Runaway
by jelanieandbedwardlover
Summary: Melanie is a 17 year old runaway. After leaving home due to problems in the home life, she meets Jared and is more than happy to stay with him.
1. Leaving Home

I looked at the clock again. There was about two hours to when my father would come home from work. My stepmother would be home sooner than that, maybe a half hour or so sooner. I had to work fast.

Hesistantly, I looked at the suitcase and the two bags I had settled onto my bed. The suitcase was filled, as was one of the bags. I knew I wanted more with me than just that so I decided to think quickly of what I would want to have with me and what I was okay with never seeing again. If only I could squeeze Jamie into one of these bags.

Jamie.

My little brother was just nine years old and I knew he'd want me to stay. I wish I could tell him I couldn't. I went to school today, acting as if everything was cool and as soon as I got home, I packed most of my stuff. He would understand. He would have to. Jamie knows how me and our new mother, Ellen, couldn't get along. I couldn't stay in this house any longer.

Thinking fast, I grabbed more of my clothes, my laptop (how did I forget that!) and some other items, stuffing them all into the other bag. I thought of Jamie once more so I took a piece of paper and scribbled a fast note.

_Jamie - _

_Sorry I couldn't stay. You know how bad it is here for me. But they'll take good care of you and I'll find you when I can. Love you._

_-Melanie_

I left the note on his dresser in his room so he could find it after soccor practice. With one more sigh, I slung both bags and my purse over my shoulder and held the suitcase tightly, walking down the stairs and out the front door, locking it behind me.

One more glance at my car and a sigh escaped my mouth. If I was leaving, I couldn't take it with me. My dad would track me in a second.I shook my head and walked in the opposite direction to the bus stop.

I sat beside an old woman and what looked like her grandson. The little boy smiled at me and as he did, he reminded me of Jamie. It almost made me run back home.

The bus came quickly. The woman and the little boy climbed onto the bus first and then me, grabbing all my stuff and making sure not to leave anything behind. I climbed on behind them and sat in the back by myself. I didn't let a tear escape until we passed the "You are now leaving Chicago" sign.

xxxxxxxx

I jumped myself awake. I didn't even realize I had been so tired. It was almost night now and the streetlights were turned on. There was also more people on the bus. The two passengers who had came on with me were gone. I wondered where we were.

I looked outside for any kind of hint of where we were. A lot of places said Lowell Hardware or Lowell Plaza. Oh. It hit me. Lowell, Illinois. I sighed and when the driver got to the next stop, I got off and looked around. I watched wistfully as the bus drove off and turned the corner, disappearing.

Walking seemed like it was taking forever. I got lost looking for a hotel that I asked about. There was a house on the edge of the woods, I almost felt like that old fable about eating porridge. I went up to the door, hoping there wasn't a murderer here but I needed directions to the way back and I was so tired. Running away must have taken a lot from me.

I glanced at the driveway. Yes, there was a driveway! No car so I sat down, looking at the trees and feeling stupid. Maybe I was wrong to leave my city.

xxxxxxx

"Are you awake?"

The unfamiliar voice woke me up. The first thing I noticed was it was a man's voice. And that I wasn't outside anymore. I was on a couch, a very comfy couch. I looked up and found myself staring at who was probably the most gorgeous man I'd ever seen.

Sitting up, I looked around more clearly since I was awake. "Where am I?"

"My home," the man smiled. "You were sleeping on my doorstep when I came home from work."

"This is the cabin?" He nodded. "I'm sorry I was out there."

He shrugged. "It's okay. It's not everyday I come home to a beautiful girl waiting at my door." I laughed. "Do you have a name, doorstep girl?"

"Melanie," I answered with a smile and reached out my hand. "Melanie Stryder."

"Hello, Melanie," the man took my head and I felt electric pass when he touched me. "My name is Jared Howe."

**What do you think? **

**It was careless of her to go to his house, I know, but it was right for my plot so I hope it's not too bad :) **


	2. Jared

Jared's POV

I packed up my bag of tools and got into my car. I felt exhausted after all these hours working at the site today. The guys I work with left already and I was the only one left at the bar's parking lot. Going out for a beer after a long day was something common for all of us.

Putting the key into the ignition and starting the car, I felt almost at peace. The car was out of the parking lot and headed home.

The traffic was almost non-existant. It was faster to get home than it had been the past month. Pulling up to my father's cabin that he had given to me before he died, I notice something on the doorstep. Or should I say _someone_?

I try to look over the steering wheel at the person but I couldn't get a good view of them from here. Grabbing my bag and taking the keys out, I stepped out of the car and up to the doorstep.

It's a girl is the first thing I notice. She was asleep and she had luggage with her, too. I look around for a sign that she was with someone or anything that might tell me who she is or where she's from. Nothing.

Hesistantly, I unlock my front door. Moving some of the luggage out of the way, I lift her into my arms. She's so tiny, she fits right into me. I carry her inside. As I lay the girl down on the couch, I notice her light brown hair and the content look on her face as she sleeps. She's the most beautiful girl I've ever seen.

I brushed some of her hair out of her eyes and watched her breathe again. Just who was she? I'd have to ask her when she wakes up. I went back to the doorway and grabbed her two suitcases and bag then grabbed my own. She had a purse lying there underneath the other bags I saw once they were gone so I grabbed that too and locked the door behind me.

xxxxxxx

The girl stayed asleep a little bit so I thought it'd be better to make some dinner. If she's still asleep by the time it's done, I'll wake her up and ask her if she wants to eat something. It was simple, I just put some burger meat on the stove and cooked it.

I kept glancing into the living room as I cooked. I was unable to stop thinking about the girl out there or who she was or if she even liked cheeseburgers. One time that I looked, she appeared to be waking up. I saw her legs move and even her arms so I walked towards the couch, hoping she'd be less freaked out if someone was there while she woke up in an unknown house.

Her eyes fluttered open slightly. "Are you awake?"

The girl's eyes looked around then settled onto me. Her eyes fixed on me, probably wondering who the hell I was. "Where am I?"

"My home," I gave her a reassuring smile. "You were sleeping on my doorstep when I came home from work."

She seemed to remember. "This is the cabin?" I nodded at her, waiting for her thoughts to finish. "I'm sorry I was out there."

I gave a small shrug. "It's okay. It's not everyday I come home to a beautiful girl waiting at my door." I let out a laugh though it wasn't that funny. "Do you have a name, doorstep girl?"

"Melanie," the girl answeredwith a smile and reached her hand out for me to shake it. "Melanie Stryder."

I took the hand and shook it. "Hello, Melanie. My name is Jared Howe."

"Jared," my name leaked off her lips. "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too," I said in a low voice. This girl was getting to me already. "So what brought you here? To my home?"

Melanie took a visably deep breath. "It's a long story."

"I got time."

She almost smiled then a sizzling sound broke the silence. "Is that the stove?"

"Shit!" I almost forgot about the burgers. Jumping up from my seat, I heard Melanie laugh. I risked a glance back at her and she stopped, a smirk in place. I could tell we would be getting along.

The burgers weren't too burnt, they came out just right. I put mine on a bun, melted cheese included, and called out to her. "You like cheeseburgers, Melanie?"

"I like them," she answered. She was also right behind me.

"Want one?"

"Sure."

She smiled and took her plate, putting it on a bun just like I had. "Do you have lettece, tomato?"

"Yeah," I pointed to the fridge. "In there. On the bottom shelf."

Melanie nodded and got some of it out, putting it on top of her cheese. I sat at the small table and she looked around, probably wondering if she should sit with me. I motioned for her to sit with me and she did.

Dinner was quiet. Both of us ate our food in silence, I even added a salad to the side. Melanie didn't comment but I could see from her face she appreciated that I could make a meal. It just felt nice having someone over to share it with to be honest.

When we were done eating, Melanie offered to do the dishes and I sat on the couch she had been on earlier, flipping on the tv. She sat beside me when she was done.

"Before dinner," she started slowly. I turned to face her and she tucked her legs underneath her. "When you asked where I came from. And I said it was a long story. Do you want to hear it?"

"Of course," I answered her. "If you want to talk about it."

"I want to tell you all, I do," she sighed. "But I don't know if I want to talk about it all yet so is it okay if I give you a cliffnotes version?" I nodded. "I ran away from home. My dad married this horrible woman. She's one of the worst."

"So you left."

There was no judgement in my tone and she could tell. Melanie nodded. "She didn't like me. She even told me once and hid behind my father all the time, denying it. I just couldn't be there anymore. I felt like I couldn't breathe in that house."

She gave a visable shudder and I resisted the urge to touch her. I don't think she'd like that too much especially from a stranger. "How long ago did they get married?"

She thought for a moment. "Two and a half years."

It was my turn to nod. "So you've been dealing with her for a while."

"Yeah,"she agreed. "And it just gets worse and worse."

"I'm sorry," I found myself saying.

"It's not your fault," she whispered. Melanie looked up then and into my eyes, I felt myself staring back. I knew I shouldn't but I couldn't look away. She shook her head first, releasing me too. "I'm more worried about my little brother."

"You have a little brother?" I asked her.

Melanie nodded. "Jamie. He's nine."

"I had brothers," I said.

"'Had?'"

"They died," I replied. "In a car accident two years ago."

"I'm sorry," she repeated me from earlier.

I followed with half a smile. "Not your fault." I decided to steer the subject away from that. "Is she good to your brother?"

"Yeah," Melanie nodded. "She's really good with him. Just with me, she's different. It's the only reason I felt okay about leaving him there."

"Do you miss him?"

"Yeah," she said sadly."But he's so young. He's better off at home."

"And what about you?" I asked. "What are you going to do now that you left?"

"I don't know," she shrugged. "I just knew I needed to get out of there. I can find a job somewhere but I have to find somewhere to stay first."

"Stay here."

"What?"

"You heard me," I said. "Stay here."

"I can't do that," she almost blushed.

"Well, why not?" I pushed. "I have room. You were even waiting outside my house."

She laughed a little at that. "I couldn't. I don't want to bother you and I already have."

"You haven't bothered me," I said in a quiet voice then cleared my throat and spoke up. "Come on, you have nowhere else to go."

Melanie thought for a moment. "Okay."

"Okay," I agreed.

I stood up, ready to go to my bedroom since it was getting late and I had to be up at 6 am. "Jared?"

I turned back around. "Yeah?"

"Thank you," Melanie smiled. "For bringing me in, for dinner, for letting me stay. Everything, really."

I smiled back at her. "You're welcome."


	3. Adjustments

Melanie's POV

I couldn't sleep any longer. Waking up, it took me a few moments to remember what happened or where I was. I left home. I packed my bags yesterday, got on a bus and left. Then I ended up here, with...

Jared.

I remembered it all in a rush. How I met Jared, he carried me inside and made us dinner. And most importantly, how he offered me someplace to live for now. I know I should be suspicious about that, stranger danger and everything they teach you. But Jared didn't seem like that at all. But I guess no one does. That's how they get you. But that's not Jared. I knew it. I had a feeling about him.

Okay, I had a lot of feelings about him, or maybe, just possibly for him. It's not just him bringing me into his home or letting me stay here. Or that was a big part of it. He was really sweet from just the one night I knew him. But he was also insanely gorgeous. They don't make men like that where I come from.

Wanting a glass of water, I got up and walked towards the kitchen. Jared had a full fridge for a guy who lived alone. I felt something in the pit of my stomach. What if he didn't? He would have told me if someone else had lived here though so I fought the feeling down.

Closing the fridge door, I noticed a piece of paper held by a smiley face magnet. It was Jared's work schedule. Today was June 16th, so he needed to be in a 6:30 am. I looked over at the clock. It was nearly five now. Biting my lip and considering my options, I started rifling through his cabinets. He had some pancake mix and everything else I'd need to make him breakfast. I hope he'd have enough time to eat since it wasn't long now and he wasn't awake yet. I decided he might if I got to it now.

When Jared finally walked in, a half an hour later, he was surprised to see me finishing the last batch of pancakes up. "Morning," he said.

"Good morning," I said with a smile on my face. "You like pancakes, right? You didn't have a boc because someone else likes them?"

The shocked expression fell off his face and turned into a smile. "Yeah. I like them."

"Good." My smile stayed on my face as I peeled the last ones off of the grill.

"Melanie..." he started. "You didn't have to do this."

I shrugged. "I wanted a way to say thank you for letting me stay here."

Jared's smile grew and I handed him a plate of my blueberry, box made pancakes. He grabbed the syrup and sat down. "How did you even know when I get up?"

"Couldn't sleep anymore," I gave another shrug. "Came in here to get a glass of water and saw that" - I pointed to his schedule - "and decided I could do something nice back. I know it's not even close to what you're doing but it's a start, right?"

"You don't have to make it even," he replied then bit into his breakfast. "Wow." These are really good. Better than I can make them."

"My mom had a certain recipe for things like pancakes," I said back then let out a small laugh. "Even ones that come from a box."

He laughed, too. "Well, you're good at it."

"Thank you," I looked right at him.

Jared looked back. "You're welcome."

I went back to eating and I sat beside him, eating my own plateful. We both ate in silence but every so often, I would look at him or he would look at me. God, I was gaining a crush on the guy already and I doubted he was returning the feelings. I needed to not think of that.

When Jared was done eating, he offered to wash up for me but I told him no. Nodding at me, he walked back into his bedroom (I had refused the bedroom so many times last night when he offered it. Instead, he's gonna clean up the extra bedroom for me after work.) and came out just a few minutes later. He was wearing a jacket and holding his wallet.

"Time to go?" I asked as he walked into the kitchen.

"Yeah," he looked up at me. "Thanks...for breakfast."

"Sure," I nodded. "It's the least I can do." He looked like he was about to say how I didn't have to make it to him again but I cut him off. "I know what you said, don't worry."

Jared walked to the front door, where I had fallen asleep on the other side of the previous night, and opened it. Before he went out it though, he turned at me. "After work, we're fixing up the room for you, remember?"

I nodded again. "I remember."

Jared gave me a small smile. "Bye."

"Bye," I answered and he was gone.

I washed everything and left it in the drain then looked around. I didn't know what to do really. I'd only been here less than twenty-four hours and everything here was Jared's so I couldn't even look around. Looking at the clock again, I realized it was too early to go checking out the town yet.

Flipping on his flat screen tv, I laid back down on the couch. Mostly there was informericals but I spotted some cartoons on so I left that on.

xxxxxxxx

Opening my eyes for the second time was weirder than the first time today. I remembered everything but saw Bugs Bunny on the tv and Wil E. Coyote. I sprang up, thinking how I must have fell asleep but glad I wore my pajamas for breakfast with Jared. I picked clothes out of my luggage and went in the shower.

When I finished. I got dressed quickly and looked around in the bathroom. I didn't think he'd hid something personal where the toilet is. There wasn't much in there, just some pills for headaches and normal things like that. Guess guys didn't need as much as a girl does.

The house was so quiet when you're alone. I wondered how Jared dealt with it but maybe he wasn't home much. Or maybe he had guests. He did have a guest room after all but it also needed to be fixed up a bit. As much as I wanted to figure out Jared's mysteries, I knew I couldn't in just one day.

Sighing, I picked up my purse. I wanted to go out but wasn't sure I should. I didn't have a key yet but maybe I could just stay out a while. No. That wouldn't work but I didn't know when exactly Jared was getting off of work. Sure, I could read his schedule but what if he got home early and wondered where I was or late and I came home without a key?

I sighed again, defeated this time. I would stay home and ask Jared about a key when he came home. But what could I do here? I looked at the now turned off television. I could try to find something good on. Maybe I could cook a nice dinner for Jared. Hmm, I smiled to myself. There actually was some possibilities.

When lunch time came, I was watching Saved by the Bell reruns. I just decided to make myself a sandwich or something quick. I opened the fridge and success! He had turkey cold cuts in there and cheese. Those were my favorites. Grabbing the bread, I made myself a combo of them and ate happily at the counter.

The phone rang and I almost panicked. Jared's voice came on the machine : _"Hey it's Jared. You know what to do." _Then a beep and Jared's voice returned. _"Melanie? Are you there?"_

I raced to the phone and picked it up. "Jared?"

"Hey," he let out a small sigh of relief. "I was worried you left. I forgot you need a key."

"I thought about that," I replied. "I was about to head out but then I stopped."

"I'm glad you did," he said. There was something in his tone I couldn't put my finger on. But he switched the subject before I could figure it out. "Hey, I was thinking of getting some pizza for dinner."

"That sounds great," I replied. My stomach made a small sound I hoped he didn't hear but I took it as a sign my stomach wanted pizza, too. "Pepperoni?"

"Is there any other kind?" Jared joked.

He told me he had to get back to work and I let him go. So no dinner to make. That was okay. I didn't really know what Jared liked anyway so it might take some time for me to know that kind of stuff about him.

Thinking about the phone call, I remembered my own phone. It was tucked, more like buried, on the bottom of my purse. I hadn't turned it on since before leaving and I wondered how many messages I had. If I had any.

Grabbing my purse and rifling right to the bottom, I found my phone. It hummed to life and the screen showed me I had thirty messages. I almost gasped out loud. Twenty of them had been from my dad. Two from Jamie. And then my stomach dropped - eight from my stepmom. Why would she call me once, let alone eight times?

I feared the messages, especially Jamie's. But he knew I had left and why. Me and him had discussed our stepmom before and then the note. I wondered if he showed it to Dad.

I shut off my cell. I couldn't listen to those messages, not yet. I know my dad means well, too but he ignored everything I said about how I felt at home. Maybe now he'll wish he listened more. And my guess was that_ Ellen _called only because he was around.

Some stepmother.

xxxxxxxxx

Hours later, Jared opened the door and walked right in. He saw me the instant he stepped inside and smiled. I smiled back at him and tried to once again push my crush on him aside. He had a huge pizza box in his hand and brought it into the kitchen. I followed and got the plates out.

Jared gave me my piece and we both started eating. "How was work?"

"Good," he said. "There wasn't that much to do today."

That made me realize something. "I didn't think of asking this before but _what_ do you do?"

Jared didn't seem offended and laughed. "I work in construction. I help make the floor plans for buildings or the blueprints when someone wants to add onto their house."

I nodded. So he did something I wouldn't know much about. "That sounds cool."

"You can say it sounds boring," he bumped his shoulder to mine and I felt that electric spark again. "I won't get mad."

I shook my head. "I don't think it sounds boring."

His eyebrows half rose. "Most people say I should be doing the actual work part, not just the drawings."

"I think you should do whichever part you want to do," I half-shrugged and took a bite of my pizza. Jared kept watching me. I tried to speak again after swallowing and laughed lightly. "What?"

"What what?"

I rolled my eyes playfully. "What's with the stare?"

"Nothing," he shrugged this time. "I just never met anyone like you before."

I laughed more this time. "Is that a good thing or a bad thing?"

"Good," he answered, still looking me then turning away. "Very good." He was making it really hard to ignore my crush. "Hey, I almost forgot something."

"What is it?" I asked excitedly. Presents made me happy.

He pulled something small out of his pocket. "Open your hand."

I did as he asked and he dropped something cold into it. I looked at what the object was. "A key! Thank you, Jared."

I hugged him then and he hugged me back. It wasn't weird but I felt like maybe I shouldn't have done that. So I pulled away and looked at my key. My key. It felt nice in my hand.

After we cleaned everything up and dinner was over, we both sat on the couch and flipped through the channels. When Jared passed TNT, I half yelled. "Wait! Go back!"

"What?" he questioned. "What was it?"

"It's Castle," I explained. The way I said the title made it seem like it needed no explanation. Probably because it didn't. "That is one of my favorite shows. We have to watch it."

"I've never seen it before," he gave me an innocent look.

"You're kidding."

"Sorry."

"Then let me show you it," I grabbed the remote from him and turned the channel back. It was one of the police station scenes and of course, Castle and the boys were being dorks while Beckett rolled her eyes. I loved it.

After only ten minutes, Jared was hooked. By the end of the episode, he turned to me and said, "I can't believe I never watched that show before."

"It's good, right?"

He nodded. "And Beckett's kinda hot."

I hit him playfully on the shoulder. "You did not say that."

"What?" he laughed.

I rolled my eyes and he saw another episode coming on and we quieted quick. After the second episode ended, he started asking me all these questions about the show and the characters. I got caught up in talking about other people's stories I almost missed when he asked how old I was.

"I'm seventeen," I answered.

He gave a slow nod. "Jailbait."

"Is that a bad thing?" Please say yes.

"No," he said instead. Damn.

I countered her. "Why? How old are you?"

"Twenty-six," he sighed. Shit.

"Wow," I breathed. Definitely not going to happen.

The conversation swayed from there and we kept watching the tv. I eventually fell asleep on the couch from waking up so early. When I woke up the next morning, Jared had cleaned out the guest room by himself. That I didn't wake up to any loud noises made me want to laugh. I looked and my new room and smiled.

I was very glad to have met Jared.


	4. Something to cry about

**Thank you for all the positive reviews! xoxo**

Melanie's POV

I sighed. Another day passed and gone. I was alone in Jared's house again. I thought about the key he had given me last night. It was shining in my purse, urging me to use it. I sighed again. I could go out and explore the town. I didn't do that much when I got off the bus and since then, all my time had been spent here.

I could go look for a job. Or just shop. Whichever.

Smiling to myself, I grabbed my purse, making sure the key was still in there. It was. I walked out the door, locked it back up and shut it behind me.

Feeling the fresh air hit my face as soon as I made it outside made me feel better than I had since I left Chicago two days ago. It seemed much longer than that since I was last home. Home. It wasn't my home anymore, here was. I felt free again the next time I sighed and kept on walking towards the stores in town.

There was some clothing stores, even a place to get my laptop checked out if I need it. It was nice. I had places to go for everything I might need and more. What struck me the most was the bookstore, however. And the "Now Hiring" sign in the window.

I walked right to the store, ignoring all the sales screaming at me and right through the front door. A boy was at the register, he had to be about my age. He looked up when the bells rang on the door and smiled at me, obviously checking me out. I walked right up to him.

"How can I help you?" the boy asked me with a smile still on his face.

I skipped his question. Kind of. "I'm here about the hiring."

He nodded and pointed to a pile of paper on the desk next to him. How did I not see that? "Applications right here."

"Thanks," I half-mumbled, taking one. "Do I do it right now or do I have to bring it back?"

"Whichever," he shrugged. Most people take it home, take some time on it. Others fill it out right here and hand it to me."

"I think I might want to do it right here," I smiled at him. "Is there somewhere I can sit?"

He pointed to a chair next to the desk. It was nearly hidden. "Right there."

"Thanks," I said again. I felt so stupid not noticing the obvious things but I went to my form anyway. It had simple questions on it, name, date of birth, sex, etc. Then I got to experience. I only worked at a Starbucks back at Chicago. Nothing at all like a book store but if I can make people's drink orders, I should be able to sell books. I finished the rest of it easy.

Standing up and in front of the register, I handed the paper to the boy. He took it from me. "Melanie?"

I nodded. "Yep."

He reached his hand out. "I'm Wes."

"Hi, Wes," I smiled again and shook his head with my own. "Nice to meet you. You're my second friend here."

I laughed lightly and he joined me. "New in town, huh?"

"Yeah," I answered. "Only been here a couple of days, actually."

He tsked. "Been here my whole life."

"Is that good or bad?" I smiled.

He smiled back again. "Depends on what way you look at it."

I had a thought. "I am gonna buy something. So it's not just me taking a form or wasting your time talking."

He opened his mouth to protest I'm not wasting it but I held a finger up and grabbed a book by Meg Cabot and placed it in front of him. "Just this?"

"Uh-huh," I said.

He rang it up and told me the cost. I paid him and he handed me back my change. I was about to leave when he called out to me. I turned around to face him. "I hope you get the job, Melanie."

"Thanks, Wes," and I gave him one last smile and walked out.

xxxxxxxx

I must have checked every store I could find. I now had three more bags, not counting my first bag from the bookstore. I had bought a couple of tops, a pair of jeans and some flip flops. They were blue and I was in love with them.

My phone rang as I was heading home and I froze. What if it was my dad? Or Jamie? Or what if it was _her_? It kept ringing and I was afraid to look at it. But my better instincts won and I was glad that they did. It was Jared. I had almost forgotten we'd traded numbers last night. I grabbed my phone and answered. "Hello?"

"Hey," his voice said on the other line. "What are you doing right now?"

I glanced around. "Nothing, really. I was in town doing some shopping."

"Do you want to have lunch with me?" he asked.

I swallowed. Of course I did. "Yeah, I can do that."

"Do you see the Motown diner?"

I scanned the stores. "No."

Jared gave me directions to get there and I followed accordingly. When I saw the diner - and him - he gave me a smile and waved. We hung up our phones and I realized it actually wasn't that far from where I was, just I couldn't see the sign.

"Hey," I said as I walked up to him. His smile widened and my heart almost stopped.

"Hi," he replied. He made a motion of his hands for me to follow him to a table. There was tables outside and we sat at one. "I think you're going to like it here."

"Here as in the town," I started. "Or here as in the diner?"

He gave me a knowing smile and stared into my eyes. "Both."

Just then a waiter came up to us and handed us both menus. We said our thanks and started looking at it. Yes! They had a chicken wrap and curly fries. Jared was right - I would like it here. The waitor came back a couple of minutes later and I gave my order. Jared ordered a cheeseburger just as he ate the first night we met but with fries.

When the waiter left, he turned to me. "So how was shopping?"

"Good," I held up my bags.

He noticed the amount of them. "So you found a lot of stuff, huh?"

"I wouldn't say a lot," I shrugged. "But I did find stuff. Good stuff, too. And I applied for a job."

He had a surprised look on his face. "Really? Where?"

"Um...that book store not too far from your house," I said, taking a sip of my water.

"So you met Wes."

He still had that knowing look on his face. What was that about? "Yeah, I did. You guys friends?"

"Not really," he answered. "I've only talked to him a couple of times."

I nodded. "He seems nice."

"Yeah," he looked at me questionably. "I guess he is. Like I said, I don't really know the guy."

It was my turn to look at him questioning. "You sound like you don't want me around him."

"I never said that."

"Hmm." But he did sound that way or was it just me? I was about to say more but the waitor came back with our drinks and our food. This place was fast.

Neither of us brought up the conversation again and we just ate every once in a while commenting on the food or something else about the town. When we were finished, he asked me about dinner then went back to work. Waving at him goodbye, I felt weird about the conversation. Was he jealous? I didn't think so but something was nagging at me.

I walked home, looking around at the places I had just shopped at or didn't get the chance to. I was excited about living here and about the idea of a job already. Wes was nice and even if Jared seemed weird about it, I think he'd be happy if I was working, too. I didn't want to be a stranger in his home and not paying my way. That wasn't right.

Entering my new home, I shut the door behind me. I sighed again just like I had before I left the house earlier. Being home alone made me think of all the things I left behind - my dad, Jamie, my friends. My friends knew what it was like at home for me though. So did Jamie but my dad didn't. He never believed me when I told him about it.

Thinking of my family, I looked at my phone. The thirty missed calls wasn't showing up anymore so I hesistantly checked my messages. The first one I heard was my dad.

"Hey honey," his voice said to me. "Just got home and you're not here. What time are you coming home? Call me back. Love you."

The next few went just like that. My dad just got more and more worried as the messages went on then one from Jamie.

"Mel." His voice sounded so small I think I might have cried. "I miss you. I know why you left but it's not the same here. I hope I see you soon."

Then he cut off. I sat down on the couch and put my head in my hands. My dad's words don't affect me the way my little brother's does. I tried to listen to more messages, mostly from my dad when my stepmom's voice came on.

"Melanie, where did you go?" she asked in a demanding voice that no one but me would notice. "We're worried. Are you all right? Call us as soon as you can."

Hmm. My dad must have been in the room when she made that phone call. The next one was my dad.

"Melanie, I'm getting worried," he said. "It's been hours and it's the next morning. Where are you, honey? Are you okay?"

Then another one, more worried than the last. His next one answered an earlier question though.

"Jamie showed me the note you left him," my dad said in a sad voice. "Why did you leave? You just said he knows why but I don't." There was a pause then he spoke again. "Sweetie, call me and just come home. We can talk about whatever made you leave. Please. Come home and we'll talk. I love you."

I almost shut off the phone right there. But then a voice came on again that sent chills through all over again like it did the last time I heard just minutes ago.

"Melanie, if you don't come home by tomorrow," my stepmother's voice leaked. "I will find you and drag you back home kicking and screaming. You get back here right now."

Then it was gone. Just like that. I shut off the phone, not caring about hearing the rest of the voicemails and laid down. I cried for the first time in a while, actually worried she might find me. I know her. She just might.

xxxxxxxxx

I heard keys in the lock and the doorknob turning. It shot me right up. I must have fallen asleep after I cried. I stood up and straightened myself out as Jared walked in. He had a smile on his face then he looked at mine and it faltered. He laid down his tool bag and came to me. "What happened? Are you all right?"

"I'm fine," I shook my head. "I was just listening to my messages and then I fell asleep."

His face told me he knew there was more to the story but he didn't push me on it. He remembered some of what I said before, I could tell. He just nodded though. "Do you want some dinner?"

"Sure," I whispered then walked towards the bathroom. "I'm just going to wash up first."

Jared gave me another nod. "All right."

Entering the bathroom, I turned the light on and faced the mirror. Oh My God. I looked terrible. My eyes were really red, I must have been crying harder than I thought. I turned the water on and wiped at my eyes, trying to clear them as best as I could. Looking at myself made me hate my stepmom even more. She made me feel horrible once again.

I made a vow as I finished cleaning up. This was the last time I was going to let her get to me.

I walked out of the bathroom and straight to one of the stools in the kitchen. Jared was already working at making dinner and I just watched him. It was kinda hot the way he knew how to cook and not only that - he was good at it. It made me smile even more.

So I just sat watching him. He was so crafted at cooking. I wondered if he ever considered being a chef instead of construction. But instead of asking, I watched him work. Jared really had magic hands. I imagined them holding me and pushed that thought even further away.

We talked about his day and more of mine, not mentioning Wes again though, as we ate. It felt good to just connect with someone about everything. I never had someone to come home to and tell about my day like I had with Jared right now.

After I washed the dinners for him, I took a deep breath and started talking. "Before...when you came home..."

Jared shook his head. "I don't wanna know. If it's something personal to you or upset you, you don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"I do want to," I walked closer to him and he sat on the couch. I sat beside him. "I told you how my stepmother was terrible." He nodded. "But I never told you why."

He put his hand on mine. "You don't have to tell me anything you're not ready to tell me."

I shook my head again. "No. I feel like I need to get ut out, you know? It's not the worst thing you can imagine at least. It's actually pretty tame when you compare it to others."

I laughed a humorless laugh but he just looked at me. "Okay."

Another deep breath. "It started with little things. Like she drank a lot so if she left the cabinet open, she'd say I did it and I would be grounded. That was a few months into their marriage. I kept secret so she acted nice to me. But then a year later, I told her not to do it anymore. That I wasn't the one drinking so she should just tell him the truth."

"What happened then?"

"That...was the first time she slapped me," I answered and another deep breath followed. Jared gave a sad look but he didn't say anything so I continued. "It didn't happen again for a long time. I just kept letting her put the blame on me because I was scared of her."

"So what made you finally get out of there?" he asked me.

"For the last month," I said, "she's gotten worse with her drinking. Always saying she's sick and sleeping or throwing up. But I caught her in my room a week ago with all the bottles. She was very drunk. More than I had ever seen her before. And when she saw me...she snapped."

Jared inhaled sharply. "What happened?"

"She hit me again," I answered. A tear fell out of my eye. "More than once. It was like she couldn't stop. My face had gotten so red. I finally fell down and she stopped. I decided right then and there I couldn't be there anymore. Not if that time she hit me until I fell. I needed to make myself safe."

Jared put his arm around me with his hand in my hair, pulling me closer. I moved forward and hugged him tighter than I ever hugged anyone. I was crying hard now and it wouldn't stop. He just held me close and let me cry unto his shirt. So I did.

When we finally pulled apart, what felt like hours later but was only minutes, we stared into each other's eyes. I leaned forward and he looked like he was too. Our lips touched lightly and electric crackled. I pulled myself closer to him and we kissed more passionatly now. He kissed me back and put his hands on my face.

But just as soon as I moved forward, he pulled apart. "We can't do that."

"No," I said in a low voice then it rose. "Why?"

"I'm taking advantage of you, Melanie," he said simply. "I can't do that."

"You're not."

"I am," he shook his head. "That can't happen."

And he got up from his seat and walked into his bedroom. Great. I just screwed over not only a chance of a future together but our friendship, too. Good job, Melanie.

I stayed on the couch a few more moments until I decided to go into my new own room, too. There I just thought about the good parts of the day - meeting Wes and the job rather than the kiss me and Jared shared and the voicemails. Tomorrow was probably doomed already.


	5. Drinking buddies

Jared's POV

"Man, you need to stop being so distracted."

I turned to look behind me and saw my friend, Brandt giving me some of look. He was staring at me as if that would make me stop thinking about whatever was on my mind. Too bad it wasn't that simple.

"Sorry," I managed to say back almost a few seconds too late.

He was still looking at me weird. "What's going on with you anyway? You've been distracted for days now."

"It's nothing," I said as I headed back to the tables where everyone else was. My cigarette was long gone so I didn't really need to be on my break anymore. Brandt followed behind me. I turned back to look at him. "What?"

"Nothing," he echoed me. "Just wondering where your head's at."

It's at home with this girl I just met a week ago. "It's here, Brandt. Where else would it be?"

He gave me another look then understanding seemed to cross his face. "Ah. Now I get it."

"What?" This time I stopped and stood right in front of him. "What do you get now?"

He smiled knowingly at me. "It's a girl, ain't it?" I didn't answer. "It is! What's her name?"

"It's not that," I turned around again and starting walking again, faster this time. "It doesn't matter."

He caught up to me and was walking next to me. "Just tell me her name and I won't ask anymore questions."

I looked at him. We had discussed girls before so I didn't know this was so weird for me to get out. I sighed, "Melanie."

"Melanie," he nodded.

"No more questions, remember?"

He put his hands up in surrender. We stopped walking by now and stood there still. "One more?"

I exhaled. He took that as a yes.

"How come you don't just" - his voice became girl like - "take her home and spent the night?"

He laughed, voice back to normal.

"It's not like that," I answered him.

"Then how come you're out here on smoke breaks, staring off into space about her?"

I shook my head again. "It's not like that."

"You sound like you're trying to convince yourself of that," Brandt observed.

He was right and I wanted to hit him for realizing it. "I'm not." He gave me another look. "It's just - she's staying at my place for over a week now. I'm just thinking about what to do about it. There's nothing more going on."

"Sure," he replied. His smirk said he thought otherwise.

He started to walk away but he turned again, and half shouted, "You know, Jared, I just might have to come over soon. See the new changes around the house."

I had about a million things to say back to him but I kept my mouth shut, not wanting to call him a dick in front of the boss who was standing not too far away from where Brandt now was. If he heard, the boss was sure to hear it, too.

Shit. I really shouldn't have told him, I was thinking as I went to the table the boss was now standing at, too.

xxxxxxxxxx

As I was leaving for work, Brandt came up to me again. "Not this again."

"I'm here as a friend," he said but I could tell he was ready to joke some more. "It's just - come on, man. We're buddies. Why didn't you tell me you had a girl staying at your house?"

"It didn't seem important," I said back.

"If you're thinking about her during work," he answered back. "Then it's important."

I sighed. "It wasn't supposed to be like that."

"How bout we go get a drink?" he asked me. "Tell me about this mystery girl."

"Fine," I said even though I was thinking about how fun that'd be for him and not so much for me.

We drove our separate cars to the bar. It wasn't that far from my house either so at least if I drank too much, it wouldn't be far to walk. Part of me hoped that Brandt would stay sober so I didn't have to offer him to sleep it off there.

Sitting at the bar and staring at my beer, I regretted coming here. It was only 6 p.m. but I knew that I had somewhere else I was supposed to be. I didn't go out for drinks ever since Melanie had entered my life.

Huh. Maybe I needed this.

"Tell me about her," Brandt said as she took a sip of his own beer and almost slammed it down.

"There's nothing to tell," I lied.

"No, Jared," Brandt said. "Come on. It's been months since you and Jodi broke up. It's about time you got a new girl."

The mention of my ex-girlfriend almost made me angry. She had cheated on me with a guy named Kyle and let's just say it didn't end too well. "Brandt, how many times do I have to say it? There's nothing going on between me and Melanie."

"I know you and girls," he smirked knowingly again. "You could have any one you wanted! They flock to you, man. But you rarely date let alone get laid. So if this girl got you thinking about her, she must be something."

Yeah, she was. "I'm just thinking about how weird it is having a girl staying there. That's all."

"Bullshit."

"It's not!"

I took a swig of my beer and tried looking away. He was checking out a girl on the other end of the bar so maybe I was free. He turned back to me. Dammit. "How did you meet her anyway? I don't know any Melanie's around here."

The night we met made me laugh to myself. He noticed a smile and I quickly stopped but he was obviously waiting for an answer. "I came home from work one day and there she was, sleeping on my doorstep."

Brandt laughed. "It's like fate was sending you a message! If that's not a sign to do something about it, I don't know what is."

"It's not a sign," I answered. "She was lost and came to my house to ask for help. But I wasn't home and she was tired so she fell asleep. Not some conspiracy from the fates."

He gave me another look. "That's another load of bullshit."

"What if I did like her?" I said to him in a low voice. "So what if I did? I'm not going to do anything about it."

He exclaimed, "Why the hell not?"

"Because she's seventeen." 

Brandt's face went from anger to excitement in a matter of seconds. "17! That's even better!"

"No, it's not, man," I said taking another sip of my beer. A long sip.

"Yes, it is!" his voice raised then he lowered it to match mine. "She's gotta be...inexperienced. You can teach her a few things."

I knew exactly what he meant so I didn't need to ask. "That's not why I let her stay there, Brandt."

"What?" he asked. "You did it because you're such a good guy?"

I let out a laugh. "Remind me why we're friends again."

Brandt laughed, too. "Because I tell you like it is."

"Nah," I pretended to have a thinking face on. "That's not why."

My phone rang and I checked it. _Melanie. _Shit. I hid my phone back into my pocket but it was too late. Brandt had seen it. "That's her calling?" I nodded. "You gotta answer that, man."

"No," I said. "Not with you here. You'd be making comments or jokes that I'd rather not have her listen to."

"Because she's got young, innocent ears?" he teased.

I was about to punch him when my phone chimed again. It wasn't ringing anymore but it was the tone for a voicemail. I stared at my phone then back to Brandt. She could wait a little bit more. Brandt didn't deserve to hear any kind of conversation between us right now.

I tucked it away again and ordered another beer.

xxxxxxxx

The walk home was a little sobering, I had to admit. The lights were bright but not too bright. I only had the two beers and wasn't exactly drunk but I thought it might be better to leave my car there since it was close-by. Brandt went home with the girl he had been looking at earlier.

I shut the door quietly behind me once I opened it and turned around to see Melanie sitting there. I couldn't read her expression but I knew there wasn't anger. "Hey."

"Hey," she said back. "Can we talk?"

I thought about the beers I had back at the bar. I wasn't really in the right condition for a deep conversation but I nodded anyway. "Yeah, sure."

I sat across from her on the couch, she picked at the hem of her shirt. Finally she spoke but she still didn't look back up at me. "Is this awkward? You and me?"

"Why would it be awkward?" I asked her though I knew the answer.

"Because of the other night," she answered. Then she lifted her eyes up a little bit and tried to look me and whispered. "Because of the kiss."

I nodded. "No. It's not awkward."

"Really?" her head fully lifted now. "It feels like that when I get voicemail. I thought maybe you didn't want to talk to me because of what happened."

"That's not why I didn't answer."

"But there is a reason."

She didn't say it as a question but as a statement. Stangely, I felt like this was more the kind of conversation people in relationships had but I didn't want to point it out. If she thought things were awkward before, that might really make them be.

"I was drinking with a friend of mine," I said. She deserved some kind of explanation.

Melanie sighed in relief. "So it wasn't me?" I shook my head. "You have no idea how glad I am. I didn't want to ruin what we have going here."

Something on her face made her look sad too at the same time but I could tell she meant she was glad the kiss didn't make it weird between us. I didn't know how I felt about that but I was glad she didn't think I was some creep coming after her and that was why I let her stay at my place.

"I don't want to ruin it, either," I replied. Melanie gave me a smile and stood up. "Where are you going?"

"I wasn't sure when you were coming home," she answered. "It's actually why I called you. So I ate some fast food earlier. I thought maybe you were eating out."

The way she said the last words came out weird...like she suspected something. Did she still think it was weird? "No, I didn't eat out."

"Sorry," she whispered. She gave me another smile and walked back to me. "How bout we get something together? I could eat again."

"It's all right," I returned the smile. "I can find something to eat without making you eat two dinners."

"Okay," she said. "Good."

Melanie walked back to her room this time and I was left there wondering what the hell I was gonna eat.


	6. The phone call

Melanie's POV

"Hello?" I answered my phone when it rang. I knew exactly who was calling but went through the usual greeting anyway.

"I just got a phone call for you," Jared's voice said on the other line. "Something you might want to hear."

That snapped me out of everything. I didn't see the food in front of me or the people sitting at the tables. I barely noticed the loud family sitting two tables over. "What was it?"

"Wes called," he told me. I sighed in relief and bit into my burger. "He said his boss wants you to come in on Monday to meet and see if you get the job."

"That's great!" I exclaimed then I lowered my voice. "Hey, what are you doing home anyway? I thought you were supposed to be at work."

He laughed. "I'm on break, Melanie. Thought I'd come home, see you, eat and head back. Where are you anyway?"

"At the diner you took me to the other night," I answered, looking at the door to go inside.

"Oh," I could almost imagine him smiling. Almost. "Well, I'm glad I came. So when you come home, check your message and I'll see you later, all right?"

"Yeah," I said. "Bye."

Jared said bye too and hung up. I looked at my surroundings. I might have a job in less than a week. This was very good news. I felt so happy at that moment that I didn't even pay attention to who was calling when my phone rang again.

"Did you forget to tell me another message?" I joked as I answered.

"Melanie? Is that you?"

Oh, shit. "Dad?"

He breathed out in relief. "Melanie, sweetheart, I've been so worried about you. Where are you?"

"Somewhere else," I answered, my voice turning bitter.

"You know what?" he said as if I hadn't spoken. "It doesn't matter. As long as you come home."

"I'm not coming back, Dad."

"Why not, honey?" he asked. "Is this really about your step-mom? Is that really enough to make you leave your home? Your family?"

"That is not my home anymore," I said avoiding his first two questions.

He sighed. "Just tell me when you're coming back, sweetheart. This little act of rebellion ends now."

"It's not an act," I hissed then lowered my voice, noticing others could see my anger on my face. "I'm not coming back. And that you think what happened's 'not enough' to make me leave tells me everything I need to know."

And I hung up. I didn't even want to hear his answer. I blinked once then a couple of more times to make the tears not appear. He brushed off what his wife did. Of course. He'd always taken her words over mine anyway. I should have checked who was calling. My call with Jared made me believe it was him again.

I will never make that mistake again.

I stood up, looking for a direction to go in. I couldn't face Jared right now so home was out of the question. How long til he went back to work? I didn't want to sit around waiting for him. Instead I started walking in a direction I had heard of before.

There the bar was. The one that Jared had been to the other night. Owen's. I didn't think there was actually a chance they'd let me in but I took a deep breath and walked towards it. Maybe I could just sit there and wallow was I waited for Jared to go back to work.

There wasn't many people in there since it was lunch hour but mostly people were playing darts or sitting at a table with food in front of them. Good. Not too bad. I went up to the bartender asked for some chips. He nodded, obviously thankful I didn't ask for a beer so he'd have to card me.

I kept myself seated at the bar, waiting for my chips when a guy came up to me. I tried to ignore him by looking the other way but it didn't work.

"Hello," he said.

"Good-bye," I replied and moved a seat down.

He followed and let out a small laugh. "Come on. Let me buy you a drink."

"No, thank you," I said as I kept looking the other way.

He didn't like that. The guy came and sat on the other side of me and I really got a good look at him this time. He had sandy blonde hair, blue eyes, and was wearing a gray tee, black leather jacket over it. He was gorgeous.

The guy noticed my observation and cocked an eyebrow. "Now can I buy you a drink?"

"S-sure," I stammered out.

Looking at this guy sure was getting my mind all flustered. He laughed. "What's your name?"

"Melanie."

"Hello, Melanie," he chuckled. "I'm Kyle."

xxxxxxxxx

I wasn't sure how much time had passed. It seemed like hours and minutes at the same time. Kyle was actually pretty funny, despite my first impression of him. I had actually meant it when I laughed at his jokes. 

We were sitting in a booth now and he had been sitting close to me. The drinks kept coming, some for him and some for me. I guessed he was a known resident of here so that was why he got away with buying me any of them.

"So are you new in town?" he asked me. I stopped laughing and sobered up immediately.

"Yeah," I managed to answer. "I've only been here a bit longer than a week, actually."

"Ah-ha," he smiled at me. "That's why I've never seen you around before."

"That's why," I tried to joke. I didn't really want to talk about me or my situation. "What about you? Lived here your whole life?"

Kyle nodded. "Born and raised."

"Wow," I said. "School?"

"I actually took over my pop's mechanic business when I graduated," he answered. His face looked sad.

"How come?"

"He died when I was fifteen," he replied. "My uncle ran the place til I turned eightteen."

"I'm so sorry," I said and put my hand over his. I wasn't sure why I was letting myself get close to this guy. I barely knew him. Maybe it was the drinks.

At just that moment, my cell phone rang loudly. I sighed and looked into my purse, making sure to check this time before I answered it. Jared.

I flipped it on. "Hey."

"'Hey?'" he asked me. "Where are you?"

"Uh..." I scrambled for an answer. "Out?"

"Have you been home?" he asked, sounding annoyed.

I considered lying. "No."

He sighed. "Mel...where are you?"

My heart almost fluttered. He had a nickname for me? Then I looked over at Kyle and pushed it aside. "I'm...at a bar."

"A bar?" he questioned. He was probably thinking I'm too young to be in one just like I'm too young for him to look at in any romantic way. "Shit. The one I told you about?"

I nodded then spoke. "Yeah. But you don't have to come. I'm fine."

"Melanie..." his voice sounded strained and I felt terrible. How long had I been here? "Don't do anything crazy, all right?"

"Okay," I whispered then he hung up.

Kyle was watching me and my face. I could only imagine what my expression showed. "Boyfriend?"

"No," I replied. "No, he's not."

"Then who is he?"

"A friend." Who's acting more like a boyfriend. Weird.

"Just a friend?" Kyle teased.

"Yes," I smiled at him. "Only a friend."

And so we relaxed into a conversation about his parents, growing up, likes and dislikes. Then it happened.

"What the hell's going on here?"

I looked up right into Jared's angry face. I had never seen him that mad before.

"Jared..." I started scooting out of the booth but Kyle pulled me back.

"Hey, man," he said, voice cheerful. "It's been a long time. What have you been up to?"

Jared wouldn't even look at Kyle. He was staring at me. "Let's go."

"Why? I'm having a good time." Then I looked between the two guys. "Wait. You two know each other?"

"Yeah!" Kyle answered. "We went to high school together."

"It was a long time ago," he said, still looking at me. "Come on."

I looked at Jared's face more clearly this time. His mouth was hard and angry, like he was trying not to yell again. But his eyes...there was pain there. Jared and Kyle did not have a good past. I tried to get up again. This time Kyle let me go.

He grabbed my arm in a gentle way. He wasn't holding too tightly or dragging me but just keeping hold of me to make sure I was with him. It felt kinda nice.

Jared was quiet the whole way home. I sat quietly in the car. The radio played faintly in the background but I didn't hear it. When we got home, I walked in first and the drinks were getting to me. I only had two so I wasn't drunk but I still felt some aftershocks of it.

He slammed the door however. "You know Kyle?"

"No," I answered and he have me a look. "Well, yes. Now I do. We just met."

He nodded. "Don't go anywhere near him again. Especially not somewhere liquor is sold."

This angered me. "Who are you to tell me who I can and can't see?"

Jared walked closer to me. "I'm the person who gave you someplace to live so I think I deserve a little trust when it comes to people I know better than you do."

"And I deserve more of an answer than that, Jared," I retorted.

"You were drinking tonight," he said, changing the subject. "So maybe this isn't the time for this conversation."

"Why not?" I questioned. "Why not now?"

"Melanie -"

"No," I say. I almost stamped my foot for dramatic effect. "I don't get it. You don't want me hanging out with Kyle but you won't tell me why. Is it about the kiss?"

"What?" he snapped back to attention.

"You said it wasn't awkward," I said. "That it wasn't going to be weird between us. Did you mean it and it's just about him or are you not telling me something?"

He looked at a loss for words. "Melanie -"

"No," I shook my head. "Tell me. Because if it's going to be weird then I can't stay here. You have to tell me, Jared."

His eyes looked pleading, like he was unsure what to say. "It's just him."

"Honest?"

"Honest," he answered.

"OKay," I nodded. "Then I will respect your opinion on it even though I still don't understand what's going on."

"I'll tell you later," he said. "I promise."

I gave him a smile and he gave me a small one in return but there was something off about it. I was about to head back to my room but something made me turn back to look at him. "Jared?"

He was in the kitchen now, probably to make something for dinner since I'd been with Kyle at the bar for so long. "Yeah?"

"Before I went to the bar..." I started. "After you called me. My dad called. I answered, thinking you were calling right back."

His face looked concerned. "What did he say?"

"He asked me where I was, told me to come home," I shrugged as if it was no big deal. "He belittled the situation at home and I hung up on him."

He sat down on one of the stools. "Are you okay?"

The tears risked coming out again but I somehow got them back in. "Yeah. I'm fine." I started to head back but changed my mind again. "I just wanted to tell you...because it was why I was there."

He nodded, understanding. "Thanks."

I gave him another smile and walked back to my room.

**What do you think? Still like it? **

***Note: Kyle and Ian aren't brothers in this one. I know, I could make them long lost brothers or they could still be since I haven't introduced Ian into the fic yet but I have plans for him later on and it works better this way ;)**


	7. Old Ties

Melanie's POV

Last night had to have ruined everything more than the kiss did. Breakfast was awkward at best and other than that, we didn't talk much. He asked how I was today and I knew he meant about my dad's phone call. I still wasn't sure how I felt about that and everything else that happened later was clouding up my mind.

Sitting in my bedroom, I stared at my phone. I flipped through the contacts. My old friends back in Chicago who were probably being hounded by my dad and the cops right now to where I could be. They had no idea where I was. I never even told them I was leaving.

They knew some parts of it, though. One of my guy friends, Aaron, knew all about my stepmother. I snuck into his parent's house a few of the times after she hit me. He let me stay over no matter when I came. He probably figured out what happened by now.

My fingers stopped on a name. Lily. She had been my best friend since the fourth grade when she transfered in because of her parent's job. She had seen the bruises before but never the whole story. I think my favorite part about her was she never asked for the story, just that I was all right.

Without any more thinking, I pressed her name and held the phone to my ear. Ringing. Another ring. A third. I was close to giving up when a voice came over the line. "Melanie?"

I sighed. It felt like forever since I heard my friend's voice. "Hey, Lily."

"Melanie!" her voice rose this time but then hushed. "Where the hell have you been? Your dad's going crazy!"

"I can't tell you where I am," I said, hating myself for what a bad friend I was being. "I shouldn't even be calling you right now."

"No, no," she pleaded. "It's good that you did. But, Melanie, I won't tell anyone where you are, all right? Just tell me how you are."

"I'm good, " I said. I looked around my room and at my few things I had taken with me. My bags were all unpacked now and in drawers. I really felt at home here. If it weren't for everything that was so weird with Jared since last night.

As if she could sense I was thinking about the hot guy I was living with, she asked. "Are you living out of some hotel?"

"No, not a hotel," I answered. "Somewhere else."

"Well, like where?" she questioned. "You never were out of town before. You wouldn't know anyone."

"I met someone," I answered.

Lily was anxious to know more. "Who?"

"A guy," I answered vaguely.

"A guy?!" she exclaimed and I could hear her bedroom door shut. "You met some random guy and are living with him? Are you crazy? Is he hot?"

"It's not exactly like that," I replied. "He found me asleep and offered me a place to stay."

"Hmm," was all she said. "It's still crazy."

"Maybe," I shrugged. "But he's not so bad."

"Looking?" she filled in.

I laughed. "My sentence was done, Lil."

"Pfft," she said. "This is so not fair. You left town and the first thing you do is meet a guy who lets you live in his house. Can I come?"

She laughed and I knew she was joking but the way she said it got to me. I passed over what she said. "How's everything back home since I've been gone?"

"Ugh, insane," she said. "Your dad called the cops at first but Jamie showed him there's a note. That didn't convince your dad much though. He still wanted to find you."

I nodded. "Well what about my stepmom? What's she doing?"

"Huh."

"What?"

"Just thinking," she said. "She's not really doing much actually. It's kinda like nothing even happened."

It wasn't exactly a surprise she didn't care I was gone. "I figured she might not care. She's why I left."

"What?" she asked me. "You stepmom was why you left?"

"Yeah, she was."

"What happened?" she questioned. "What could she - Oh my God. Those bruises you had. She did them, didn't she?"

"Yeah. And my dad didn't believe me."

"Holy shit," she breathed. "Did anyone else know?"

"Aaron," I answered her. "That's it though."

"Does the new guy know?"

"He's not the 'new guy'."

"Okay, okay," she said. "The new friend. Does he know?"

"Yes."

"Before me?" she cried. "You just met him! Why does he know before I did?"

"Because I had to tell him why I left home," I said.

"You like him," she observed. "Not just in a he-gave-me-someplace-to-live or a he's-a-really-hot way. You actually like him."

I shrugged. "Maybe."

She gasped. "You do! Oh my God."

"Sssh," I said though Jared couldn't hear her. "I don't."

"Liar." I could hear the smile in her voice.

"So what if I do?" I countered. "It's not like anything would happen. He's made it clear he doesn't care that way." Even if he does act weird.

"Clear how?"

"He said it basically," I shrugged again. It was becoming a habit. "Told me his feelings aren't like that."

"He's lying," she observed.

"What?" I asked. "How do you know?"

"A guy wouldn't tell you he doesn't feel like that so openly unless he did," she answered. Her tone sounded like she might as well had said 'Duh.'

I thought about it but still wasn't convinced. "I wish you knew him, Lily. You could tell me from the way he talks or his expressions."

She laughed. "Melanie, I wish I knew him just because you like him. But I won't be meeting him anytime soon, will I?"

"No," I whispered. "Probably not."

Lily chuckled. "Well, at least you're safe, Lanie. It's got to be better than here."

"It is," I agreed then felt a pang in my heart for my little brother. "I might be getting a job in town."

"That's great!" she said. "Not Starbucks again, right? Those customers were pains in the ass."

"No, not there," I laughed.

There was a moment of silence before I spoke again. "Listen, Lil...I should get going."

"Yeah," she agreed. "I'm glad you called."

"Me too," I said. "Bye."

"Bye."

And we hung up. I laid down on my bed with my head stuffed in the pillow, thinking of the friends I left behind. And my thoughts also drifted back to Aaron.

A knock came at the door and I shot up. "Come in."

Jared peered inside, making sure it was all right then opened the door wider. "Hey."

"Hey." I pushed my old life aside for the moment and sat up straighter.

He looked sad. "Can we talk?"

"Yeah, sure," I said. He looked around for someplace to sit but there wasn't really any chairs yet. I sighed and rolled my eyes. "Just sit on the bed."

He listened and looked at his hands then finally at me. "You asked me about Kyle last night and I didn't want to tell you."

I nodded. "Uh-huh."

"If you want..." he said slowly. "I'd like to tell you about it."

Another nod from me. "I want."

Jared sighed, turning more to face me. "We met in high school. We'd been in the same school since elementary but we never actually met before. Me and him became best friends fast. We both played baseball and we were popular. Junior year, I started dating this sophomore named Jodi."

Uh-oh. "She was beautiful and we got along great. We'd double date with Kyle and whatever girl he was dating that month. Then when we graduated, Kyle's dad died and he stayed here and took over the shop. Me and Jodi both went off to college and he was left here."

"Jodi started coming back here a weekend a month to see her parents. I didn't think much of it at the time. Then she stopped suddenly. I asked her about it and she said her parents thought it'd be better for her to stay up here with her friends. A month after my college graduation, the car accident that killed my brothers and dad happened. He left his house to me and I came back here to live."

I swallowed. "What happened then?"

His face had a hard look on it. "A year ago, I went over to Kyle's house. He had the door unlocked and I found them together. She tried to explain but what could she say, right? Apparently when she used to 'visit her parents', she would come see him and they'd have sex. But then she called it off because she didn't think it was fair to me but I guess telling me wasn't fair either."

I reached over and touched his hand. "I'm sorry."

Jared met my eyes and continued. "But here's the worst part - they started up again five months before I found out. She officially called it off after I caught them. We even tried to make it work for a little while after but it got to the point I couldn't even look at her anymore. Even with Kyle out of the picture, he'd never be out of our relationship so I broke it off with her for good and never saw her since."

"Where'd she go?" I asked.

He shrugged. "Her parents moved out of here two months ago, four months after we broke up. I figure they went near her."

"I'm sorry," I repeated. "I had no idea."

He just shook his head. "It's not your fault."

"Yeah," I argued. "But I was with him. If I knew -"

"But you didn't."

I pretended he didn't interrupt. "If I knew, I wouldn't have bothered with him."

"It probably wouldn't have helped," he cracked a smile and I smiled back at him. "Kyle can be pretty persistant."

"Ha!" I started laughing for some reason. I had no idea why really. When I was calmed down, Jared looked at me like I was crazy. "I was just thinking about how if you never came, I bet I would have made out with him or something."

His expression was unreadable. "That's funny how?"

"Because he's a creep!" I laughed. "You basically saved me from ever doing anything at all with that creep including seeing him again."

"So...you're not.." he asked. I gave him a look to finish. "You're not gonna see him again?"

"Hell, no!" I laughed. "He was your best friend and continually was sleeping with your girlfriend. I'm not going anywhere near that."

He smiled at me again but this was a different kind. "Good."

"Good," I nodded.

"Now come on," he said, getting up off the bed. "I want to take you out for lunch. You deserve a better Saturday than this."

"All right," I beamed.

Jared held out his hand for me and I took it. Together, he grabbed our coats and we walked outside almost as if it was a date.

**Short! I know! But this chapter was supposed to be longer but I decided last minute just as I was about to write it actually that I wanted some things in Jared's POV so next chapter will be from his perspective and I hope you like it :)**


	8. An unwanted visitor

**Here's the next part :)**

Jared's POV

Lunch felt back to normal. We went to that diner we had gone to before and Melanie seemed happier than she had been. I wanted to ask her about it but pushed it aside in case it changed her mood.

Telling Melanie about my past with Kyle felt like a huge weight had been lifted off of my chest. I could tell from the look on her face it meant something to her. Maybe it was that I trusted her with a part of my past. Maybe it was like I returned the favor of what she told me about her stepmom. Whatever it was, I'm glad it happened.

We went back home and there was a car I recognized sitting in the driveway. "Shit", I muttered to myself.

Melanie heard me. Her head turned to me. "What?"

I pointed to the car and whispered. "Kyle."

She watched the car now like it was poison. We kept walking towards the front door and right then, movement to my left. Kyle walked up to us. I leaned down to Melanie and whispered, "Just get inside. I'll get rid of him."

"Kay," she nodded and took out her key.

Kyle smirked when she did so. "So it's true. She lives here with you?"

"It's not really any of your business what goes on in my life," I said to him, trying to block Melanie from his view.

He peered around me to see her. "That answers that."

Melanie got the door open but was hesistating looking between the two of us. I told her to go with my eyes and she started to walk in. "What the hell are you even doing here, Kyle?"

He watched her go inside and shut the door then turned back to me. "Ran into Brandt, actually. He might have slipped that there was a girl named Melanie living at your house. It made me wonder."

"Again, I say," I started. "That it's none of your business."

He started laughing. "Come on, man. We were best friends. You don't have to act like this."

My fists balled up. "_Were_. Not anymore."

"Man," he was still laughing. "You got to get over what happened."

"If by what happened," I spoke through my teeth, "you mean sleeping with my girlfriend of nine years. Then not so much, no."

"Man," he said again. "I can't believe this. I was just trying to be nice and make your guest feel more at home. Or is she not a guest? Is the real reason you're so mad about me around her is because she's reserved for you?"

"You need to shut the hell up." My fists balled even tighter.

"No, I'm curious," he said. "Really. Are you and her sleeping together or something? Because she's a little young for you, isn't she?"

"Big words from someone who seemed ready to be more than a friend themselves," I snapped.

He chuckled. "True. But you did always have more morals than me so..."

"A hell of a lot more."

"No but come on," Kyle said. "Just tell me. I won't go after your girl. Twice."

I pretended he didn't say that last bit. "She's not my girl but she's not yours either."

Kyle smirked now. "I think she should be the one making the choice." He walked closer to the door and I followed. "Melanie! Melanie!"

I pushed him back. "Leave her alone and get the hell out of here, all right?"

"No," he said. The smirk was gone from his face.

The door opened behind me and Melanie's voice followed. "Jared, are you okay out here?"

"Fine," I said through my teeth again. "Just get back inside."

"Wait," Kyle said. He tried to walk closer to her but I pushed him back again. He pushed my hand aside and me too. I hit him. There wasn't even much thinking to it.

"Jared!" Melanie rushed outside and to my surprise, she ran to me. I thought she'd run to Kyle since he was the one who just got hit. "Oh my God."

Kyle sat on the ground, wiping blood off his mouth - or was it his lips? I couldn't tell. His eyes dared daggers at me while they also showed something else. I wasn't sure what but I didn't feel much for finding out either.

"Let's go inside," I told her and we walked around Kyle.

He smirked up at the two of us this time. "Going inside? I guess it is hotter in there then it is out here." Then he chuckled again.

I leaned forward about ready to hit him again, not caring he was already on the ground but I felt Melanie's hand on my sides, holding me back. She was the only reason I didn't do anything more.

I backed up with Melanie's hands still holding onto me, guiding me into the house and not letting my foot go to Kyle's stomach. He grinned as he stood, watching us and we finally got back to the door. I had to say one more thing. "Hey, Kyle? Next time you think about coming here - don't."

And I shut the door before he could say anything back.

"Oh my God," Melanie repeated. "He is insane. Oh God."

I looked at her for the first time since seeing him outside. Her eyes looked panicked and she was breathing hard. "I wish you didn't have to deal with him."

"You don't have anything to apologize for," she said with a half smile on her face. It made her even more beautiful. "I went to that bar. I let him buy me a drink. I got myself into this mess."

"Yeah but maybe I could have done something," I said in a low voice.

"Like what?" she joked. "Kill him? You seemed ready to outside. Seriously, though. What did he say to get you so angry?"

He might have said I only cared about sleeping with you. "It was just some stuff about you," I said instead.

"Me?" she asked. "What could he say about me? He barely knows me."

"He said some things that sounded like he only cared about getting you in his bed," I answered. I watched her face to see a reaction and she was disgusted.

Then she laughed a little laugh. "I'm a little surprised he didn't roofie me back at the bar, then."

I let out a laugh too. "I'm glad you can joke about him."

"If I didn't joke about him," she said, all joking off of her face. "I would be thinking of what an asshole he is and I don't want to."

"I get that," I replied. "I've been there more times than I can count."

She nodded and sat down on the couch. "Was he always like that?"

"Kyle?" Like I needed to ask who she meant. Melanie nodded. "No. He used to be a good guy. I kind of think Jodi did something to change him."

"Like what?"

"I don't know," I shrugged. "But ever since their - whatever it was - started, he seemed different."

"Maybe he was in love with her," she said in a small voice. I looked at her and she was staring right at me. "Maybe he realized she'd never love him like she loved you and that he'd never really get to be with her, in a real relationship. Maybe it broke him."

Huh. I never thought of that. "I wouldn't know. He never really apologized to me. It's not like I ever had any insight why my best friend did that."

"I'm sorry," she said again and this time I could tell it was genuine.

"Thanks," I said and sat down next to her. She gave me a smile and leaned closer to me, snuggling on my shoulder. "What are you doing?"

She wrapped her arm inside mine and smiled wider. "I want to be close right now. Don't ask me why but I just _feel_ close to you."

I nodded. That I understood. "Okay."

xxxxxxxxx

We ended up watching Castle episodes on demand. It felt really nice to be able to sit there with someone and just feel a connection to them. Plus Melanie really had gotten me addicted to this show though I didn't really want to admit it.

Melanie moved first. It felt like a part of me was missing when she stood up. "Where are you going?"

She smiled. "Dinner?"

"Right," I said. I looked over at the clock. 6:17 pm. Wow. We really got caught up in watching the show. "What are we having?"

"If it's okay I was just going to cook some pasta," she said. The way she looked at me showed she wanted an answer.

"Yeah, that sounds good," I muttered.

Melanie nodded and my mind began to wander back to what Kyle had said earlier. _Is the real reason you're so mad about me around her is because she's reserved for you? _Was that why? Was I jealous of them and not just angry at Kyle?

No. That was crazy. Nothing even happened between the two of them. More happened between me and Melanie. Maybe that was it. Overthinking was giving me a headache. Instead I watched Melanie cook dinner. Even if I'm dying to jump her, I had to admit she was beautiful.

We sat on the couch and ate tonight when it was ready. Melanie sat close by again and I didn't object. Maybe it was because I hit the guy who was following her here. Maybe she felt safe. I didn't know but I didn't want her to move either.

I washed the forks and pots for her after dinner and when I came back to the couch, she just snuggled closer again. Her arm was wrapped around my waist so I put my arm around her and kissed the top of her head. It was definitely a nice feeling.

**I hope you liked it. Leave a review :)**


	9. Numb wishes

Melanie's POV

Days passed. My interview with Wes' boss, Walter, came and went. I didn't think there was much of a shot that I got the job. He didn't seem to like me that much - city girl from Chicago, sold coffees and lattes and other kinds of drink. Obviously not someone who persuaded people to read books they didn't come in for. It didn't look good.

Just as I was thinking about it, my phone rang. Wes. Here it comes. "Hello?"

"Melanie? Hey."

"Hey, Wes." I said, closing my eyes and leaning against the couch cushions I was sitting on. "Is it good or bad?"

He didn't waste any time answering. "I'm sorry, Melanie."

"I figured," I sighed. "I didn't think he liked me that much anyway."

"It wasn't that," he defended. How could it not be? "There was this other girl, Sharon, who applied. Apparently her father was a local writer so he hired her."

Sharon. Hmm. "It's fine, Wes. You don't have to explain."

"Okay."

His voice had sounded small so I tried to say something nice back. "But thank you for letting me know yourself. It's better I hear it from a friend."

"You're welcome," he replied back and we said our good-byes and then hung up.

Another sigh escaped my lips. I knew it. I kept my phone in my hands, hoping Wes would call back and say "Gotcha!". He didn't.

I stood up and went to get myself some of the pasta salad I got at the supermarket. It was a good snack to keep my mind off everything. I needed a job. I couldn't run on what money I had forever and I definitely couldn't just expect Jared to buy me things all the time. I also couldn't stay her forever.

I really needed something to do.

I glanced at the clock. 2:30 pm. Jared's lunch break at work was over by now so calling him was out. Instead, I sat back on the couch and checked through tv for something to watch. Grey's Anatomy was on and it was earlier seasons. Good, I liked them more.

I settled myself into the seat and watched. After the first episode, my phone rang again. Maybe now it was Wes. But when I looked at the caller id - no, it wasn't him. I promised myself last time I wouldn't answer it for him again but instead, I found myself doing the stupid thing. "Hello?"

"Melanie," My dad breathed in relief. "I'm so glad you answered."

"I don't know why you're calling," I said in a detached voice.

"I miss you, honey," he said. He sounded surprised as if he had never thought of anything unhappy in my life at home.

"Stop calling me," I almost hissed. "I'm not coming back home. Not now, not ever. And you know exactly why but you're just too damn stubborn to see what it is. Just say goodbye to me and close off that chapter, all right?"

"Melan -"

I hung up and squeezed my eyes shut. This was more than I can deal with today. I thought through some options. 1 - Wait for Jared to come home. 2 - Drink. I needed some alcohol if I had to deal with thinking of my dad and home. 3 - Cry about it. I wasn't really too up for crying but I felt like it needed to come out. And Jared still had a couple of more hours to come home.

Revisiting the drinking idea, I groaned. Kyle could be there again and I did not want to see him. It had been days since he came here and Jared punched him but he still unnerved me. After what he did to Jared and the way he came after me, as if it was some game now to piss him off. The thought made me shiver.

Instead I found a new plan. I got up off the couch and looked through the fridge. Yeah. Jared din't hide liquor in there, especially not with a minor around. I clicked my tongue and thought. Where would Jared's liquor cabinet be? His room! I almost scratched off the plan right with that thought. I had never been in his room before and it wasn't really worth the reason. But I _needed_ a drink somehow. Just something to numb the pain for now.

If I was back at home, my friends would have been able to give me some.

Forgetting the reasons not to, I walked to his room and the door was slightly open so I pushed it enough to fit me through. My breath caught when I walked in. Jared was very neat. His room was beige walled and his bed was made. There was some stuff on the dressers like frames or keys. Huh. I wonder what those keys were for.

But something else got my attention. The picture in the frame was of Jared and a girl. She had dark hair and was smiling; his arm was around her and holding her closer. They looked very happy and about college age. For a moment, I stopped breathing. This must have been Jodi. I picked up the frame and looked deeper into it. His face showed a man really in love with the girl in the picture. But there was something about her expression. She was in love with him too, that part was obvious but she also had a look in her eyes. Like she knew it wasn't going to work out.

It made me wonder when the picture was taken and why Jared had kept this one framed and in his bedroom. Maybe it hurt him too much to not have it out. Maybe he didn't want it out in the living room either after what happened between the two of them. I'd understand either way.

In the corner of my eye, I spotted a cabinet. Jackpot! There was a lock on it and I looked again at the keys on the dresser. They looked like they might fit so I grabbed them and knelt forward at the wooden doors with the brass handles. The lock clicked and opened, showing me what was inside. I repeated - Jackpot.

I grabbed one of the bottles, checking out what it was and opened it. Luckily he had everything I needed to get it open in the cabinet too and this wasn't exactly my first time drinking. I smiled as the liquid entered my mouth and kept drinking it down.

Laughs escaped my mouth the more I drank. Everything about my life was funny. Leaving home. Aaron. Lily. Jamie. My dad. My stepmom. And Jared. Especially Jared because I could deny it all I want but fuck, I have feelings for him. Strong ones. Ones I wasn't supposed to get and especially not when he's letting me, basically a stranger, stay at his home for an unknown amount of time. That was the funniest of them all.

I finally left his bedroom with a last glance at the picture in the frame and went out to the living room. Stumbling a few times on my way to the stereo, I made it there. The little ipod dock sat there next to it and I found mine in my purse and blasted some Stone Sour songs. The bottle in one hand, my other just raised as I danced around the room. I was right. This was definitely making me feel better.

I drank more out of the bottle and kept dancing.

xxxxxxxx

"Melanie!" A voice yelled. It was a man's voice. "Melanie! Can you hear me?"

Jared.

I opened my eyes slowly and found his looking back at me. Worry was across his face and I tried to remember where I was. The ceiling looked like the living room. And beneath me felt like the couch. Oh crap. I tried to sit up but Jared held me down.

"Oh, crap," I muttered.

"Melanie," Jared tried again, voice quieter this time. My head throbbed. "What the hell were you doing?"

"Wh-what?"

He pointed to the floor where a broken bottle laid but no liquid was anywhere to be seen. "Oh, crap," I repeated.

"Melanie," He said. "Just tell me what happened."

He let me sit up this time and I rubbed my head, trying to think. "I didn't get the job. And then my dad called me. I told him not to call me back ever again."

He sighed and looked between me and the bottle. "So you started drinking from my liquor cabinet."

I nodded and my head felt whoozy. "I didn't want to risk seeing Kyle if I went to the bar again."

He nodded this time, understanding. "Why didn't you just call me? If you were upset, I would have came home."

I gave him the best 'Are you serious?' look I could manage. "No. You can't leave work because I want some alcohol."

"We could have solved it some other way, I mean," he replied. "Not drinking."

I tried to shake my head but it didn't work out so well so I stopped. "No. I needed a drink."

He cracked a small smile and was staring at me. "You sound like you need help."

I knew he was teasing so I stuck my tongue out at him. He laughed this time. "I don't. I just had a really bad day."

His face softened and his voice turned serious. "I'm sorry about the job."

I smiled back. "Thank you."

"And about your dad..." Jared hesitated mid-sentence. "I don't really know how to help you with that but I'm sorry about that, too."

"It's fine," I said with a shrug. "Hopefully he listens to me and if not, I'm not answering for him anymore."

"Good," he said. "It might be better off that way."

"Yeah," I said then changed the subject. "I'm sorry, too. For going in your room, taking the bottle out of it and for probably passing out and dropping it on the floor."

I looked at the glass pieces again and considered offering to pick them up but then Jared spoke with a hint of a smile on his face. "You forgot the blasting rock music I came home to."

I laughed and hid my face. "Right. How could I forget?"

"More like how could you sleep?" he joked.

I searched his eyes to see if he was angry or disappointed and came up empty. "You're not mad at me?"

"No."

"Well, why not?"

"You want me to be mad at you?"

"No," I made a face. "Not really. But it doesn't make sense."

"I never forbidded you from my room, Melanie," he said. His voice sounded low but I could still hear him. "And the drinking...well I get the part about not wanting to run into Kyle. And now that I know about your dad..." he sighed and I waited for him to continue but he didn't.

"What about my dad?"

Jared took a deep breath and spoke again. "He didn't sound like he cared much from what you told me. You might be better off without him if he's so quick to push aside something important you're telling him."

"Maybe," I murmered. "I just...I left because I couldn't deal with home anymore. I didn't expect myself to still feel like this."

"Well," he smiled again. "This is your home now, Melanie."

"Not for long."

He gave me a confused look. "Why? Where are you going?"

"I have to leave at some point," I answered. "I can't stay here forever. And I definitely can't live off of your paycheck forever either."

"For now you can," he replied and put his hand behind my neck, forcing me to look into his eyes. "I'm not kicking you out. You can stay as long as you need to, all right?"

Is forever okay? I almost really asked that. "Okay."

He sat beside me on the couch then and I leaned my head on his shoulder. His head laid on top of mine and in that moment I could swear my feelings were returned. No, they're not, some other part inside my head told me and I pretended the thought never entered my mind. Instead, I just enjoyed the moment.

xxxxxxxxx

The days following had been a little bit better. No more phone calls from my dad and even more no running into Kyle. Jared and I went out for a little bit, just picking up some stuff at the supermarket when I spotted him.

I hid behind a row of the candy, watching him out of the corner of my eye. Jared looked behind himself and saw me crouching. "What are you doing?" I pointed to the direction he was in. "Who's that?"

"That," I said through gritted teeth. "is my father."

**A cliffhanger! Stay tuned for the next one :)**

**And yes, she could have handled it better than getting drunk. But she's just a teenager remember. :)**


	10. Decisions

Jared's POV

"That," Melanie said in an icy voice, "is my father."

I looked at the man she pointed out. He looked mid-40's, maybe and he had the same hair color as Melanie but it was graying a little. I turned back to her and she was ducking behind the candy shelves even lower now. Probably making sure he can't see her.

"Shit," I muttered.

Melanie nodded. "Exactly."

She was trying to look at him and hide at the same time, moving her head a lot and occasionally looking back at me. "I need to get out of here."

"What?" I asked sharply.

She rolled her eyes. "Well, I can't stay here in the store with him. He'd recognize me but not you. Give me the keys and go pay. I'll go hide out in the car."

"Okay," I said and reached into my pocket for my car and house keys then handed them to her. Melanie gave me a smile in relief and stood up, turning around when she smacked into someone.

"Sor -" Melanie sut herself off when she got a look at just who she'd bumped into. "Oh my God."

The little boy beamed, really happy to see her. I guessed it wasn't too big a stretch to assume this was her little brother. "Mel! I missed you so much!"

He hugged her then and she hugged him back. Her face showed a million emotions at once. "I missed you, too."

They held each other for what seemed like hours but seconds later, they pulled away. Jamie looked at me and Melanie's hand, the one I had just handed my house keys to, and looked back at me. "Who are you?"

Melanie smiled when talking to her brother I noticed. It was very different than seeing her talk about him and even further away from when she talked about her father. "Jamie, this is my friend, Jared. Jared, Jamie."

"Hey," I said and held my hand out for the kid to shake. He looked at it as if it were a test - like he was asking me what I was doing with his sister.

But then he reached his small hand out and shook mine. "Hi."

Melanie watched us and her smile grew. I had to admit it was good to see her smile. But her smile dropped when she looked in the other direction, where her dad was. "Jamie, I have to go."

"What?" he exclaimed. "But I just found you!"

She looked ready to break. "I can't stay here right now. Dad's with you. You understand, right? He can't see me."

Jamie nodded. He looked heartbroken. "I get it."

She reached down to hug him one more time and remember this short reunion of the two of them. "Don't tell Dad, all right?"

Jamie just nodded again and as she stood up and was about to leave, a voice came from behind me. "Melanie?"

I saw the exact moment that she stopped breathing and she turned around, her face looked defeated. Caught. I turned myself to look at where the voice came from. It was the man Melanie had pointed out as her father and he was staring at her with a look that said 'Finally'.

Melanie didn't answer him and instead looked at me, as if she were asking for some kind of help. Her dad noticed this and looked at me too. "Hello. Who are you and how do you know my daughter?"

I was just about to answer when Melanie spoke. "You don't have to tell him anything."

I looked at her and the smile that had been there was long gone. A scowl now covered her face and it was angry.

Her dad just laughed. "So you're not talking to me? After everything you put me through, you're not gonna say hello to your father? Or introduce me to your...friend?"

"Hi," she madly said. "But I'm not telling you who he is." She looked at me. "Come on."

"Wait," her dad said. "Can I at least ask how you are?"

"Fine," she said. "Then can I ask how you found me?"

"The last time I called you," he started, "I had a tracker on the call. Some cop buddies of mine were over at the house helping out. I didn't get a direct hit but I got a vague answer so I thought I'd come check it out."

Shit. I could tell she didn't expect that and was thinking the exact same word as I was.

"Plus, you called that friend of yours," he spoke again. "Lily - was that her name?"

"How did you -"

"It doesn't matter," he cut her off. "What matters is I found you. You can come home now."

"No, I can't," Melanie said. She looked down at Jamie who was looking right back up at her.

"I talked to Ellen," he said and I remembered that was the name of her stepmom. "She denied everything and had a fit. That's when I knew she'd been lying the whole time. She's gone. Home could be like it used to be now. Just the three of us."

"No," she shook her head in defeat. "It doesn't change anything. I told you, I'm not going back."

His smile faltered. "And I told you, I'm here to take you home."

"That's not my home anymore," she said and she gave me a look that said she needed to go home.

"It is because of this guy?" he asked her, pointing at me. "Is there something going on between the two of you or something?"

"None of your damn business," Melanie said and turned, walking right out of the store. Jamie watched her with a sad look on his face. He looked like he wanted to follow her.

I walked right out after her, glad we hadn't gotten to do any real shopping yet. We had only picked up a loaf of bread so I put it down on the nearest shelf. Her dad started to follow but forgot he had a basket full of stuff in his hand.

Melanie was already in the driver's seat and turned the engine on. I jumped into the passenger seat beside her just as her dad came out of the store, Jamie now holding the basket. We zoomed out of the lot before he could see a plate.

We didn't speak the whole ride home. Melanie obviously was upset, holding tightly onto the wheel. Her eyes looked ready to cry a river. When we finally made it home, she pulled the Jeep more to the back of the house. I understand. She was hiding it in case her dad drove around.

Melanie jangeled the keys and got out of the car, walking right into the house. I had to jog a little bit just to catch up with her.

"Are you gonna talk about what just happened?" I asked her once I shut the door.

"Nope," she said as she grabbed a water bottle out of the fridge and took a huge sip.

"Do you want to?"

"Nope."

I sighed. "Is there anything I can do?"

Melanie walked out of the kitchen and went towards her bedroom. "Yeah. You can help me pack."

This surprised me. "What?! Pack?"

"I gotta get out of here," she called to me from her room.

I started following her there and stood in the doorway. "Why?"

She was grabbing one of the suitcases she came here with. "You were there. My dad knows where I am. I can't stay here anymore."

"Yeah I was there," I agreed. "But he said he didn't know an exact location so I don't see the rush."

She turned to stand right in front of me. "And it won't be long before he figures it out either."

"He won't figure it out," I argued.

"How can you be so sure?" she asked me.

I shrugged. "I'm not sure, to be honest. But I know I don't want you leaving."

"You think I want to leave?"

Melanie was staring right into my eyes and I almost told her begged her not to go right then. "No."

She turned around then and went back to packing. "Where are you gonna go?"

"I don't know," she shrugged. "It worked out the first time."

That almost made me smile and in other circumstances, I would have. "You think you're gonna find another guy like me out there?"

She looked up at me from standing over her bed with a smile playing on her lips. "Oh, no. I don't think there's anyone out there like you, Jared Howe."

Okay so now she made me laugh too. "Really. Melanie, what are you going to do?"

"I'll figure it out when I get there," she said then put a few tops in her suitcase and looked up at me. "Jared...I know you don't understand why I have to do this but I do. _I have to go. _He may not be with her anymore but it doesn't change that he trusted her over me. He made me feel like I was a terrible person all while believing his wife over his daughter. I can't go back."

I walked closer to her on the other side of her bed. We stood face to face again. "I _do_ understand, Melanie. That's the thing but I still don't want you to go."

"I know," she whispered. "I don't want to go, either. I don't want to leave you."

"What if we figure something else out?" I tried. "If he finds you here, we can try fighting against him. Sure, it wasn't him who hit you but it was neglect. He let it keep happening."

Melanie was shaking her head before I even finished. "You heard my dad. 'Cop buddies.' That's not the only friends he has, you know. He has more powerful ones than that. Lawyer ones. Ones who never lose their cases, Jared."

I grabbed her arms and steadied her to face me. "Tell me you're sure. That this is the only option and I'll let you go."

I could the war going on inside her head. She knew we could try but her logical side was winning. She knew we didn't stand a chance in court against her dad. "You know I can't tell you that."

"Then don't leave."

"This is the best option, Jared," she whispered.

I dropped my hands off her arms and she started packing again. Melanie threw everything she could into her bags.

Once the suitcase was full, she closed her eyes and spoke again. "Back at home...I had this whole support system. My friends all were on my side. They didn't even know the truth. Just Lily and Aaron did. And they still couldn't help me. How could just the two of us do it?"

I watched her before answering. A tear slipped down her cheek and she kept her eyes shut. "I don't know," I repeated her earlier answer. "But you shouldn't make a fast decision like this. It should take more planning."

"Maybe." She opened her eyes. "But I don't have enough time before he connects me to your house and I can't -_ I won't _- do that to you. I'm not putting you in the middle."

"I already am!" I yelled. "You're staying at my home, Melanie. He's seen us together. He can just ask around about me and find me."

"All the more reason I should leave," she answered in a calm voice.

I didn't do know what else I could do. Instead of arguing any more, I walked out of the room and into the living room. I imagined kicking the couch or yelling out my frustration but neither thing would keep her here. I was realizing just how much the past few weeks meant to me with the thought of her not being here anymore. It killed me to notice it now but I couldn't change the past. That made it suck even worse.

My eyes traveled the walls, thinking of everything that happened since she moved in. I had more fun with Melanie. She was even breaking down some of the walls Jodi had forced me to put up. I didn't know what I would do without her.

Just as I was thinking that, she walked down the hallway with the same luggages she had when I found her on my doorstep nearly a month ago. They just looked more stuffed now. I walked up to her again. She turned and her eyes were like crystals. "What?"

"Just tell me this is what you have to do," I said to her.

"I told y -"

"No," I shook my head. "Swear to me this is the only thing you can do. That you honestly can't stay here and you can't go back. Swear it to me, Mel."

Melanie bit her lip, hesistating. Good. That moment could be just what it takes. Then my world crashed back down. "I can't stay here, Jared. And I can't go back. I have to leave. Please. Just let me go."

I tried everything I had. "What about if your dad does come here? And he asks about you and where you went?"

"You'll tell him you don't know where I am," she replied. "Because it's the truth."

"So you're just going to walk out that door, out of my life, and we're never gonna see each other again?" I fought with all I could. "Just like that?"

"Not just like that," she answered. "This isn't easy for me but he's gonna search you just like he found out from Lily. It's better you don't know."

"Not better for me," I said back.

Melanie looked defeated and I wanted to take back everything and just erase today, pretend we never saw her dad or even Jamie in the store.

But I couldn't. And I hated it more than anything.

She turned again to leave, closer to the door this time. I had one more thing I needed to say before she goes. One more thing. "Melanie, wait."

She turned to face me, her face broken and sad. I was sure mine matched hers. I walked closer to her and put my hands on both sides of her face. "I lied before. I'm not just saying this to make you stay. But I lied."

"About what?"

"You asked me before if I felt something for you," I began. I could see her mind clicking what I meant but she didn't even know the half of it. "I lied. Melanie..."

She closed her eyes then opened them. "Don't."

I didn't listen. "I'm in love with you, Melanie. And I wanted you to know before you walked out that door and probably never see you again. I love you."

Another tear slipped down her cheek and she looked me right in the eye. "I love you, too," she whispered. "And it's more of why I have to leave."

She tried to leave again but this time I grabbed her arm and pulled her towards me. My lips came down on hers hard and she responded instantly. Melanie dropped her bags with a thud and wrapped her arms around my neck. My hands went to her back, wrapping my arms around her waist.

It felt like everything had led to this moment and yet nothing at the same time. Kissing Melanie felt right. She moved closer, pressing her body to mine. I pressed myself to her. Our lips moved together for what seemed like forever. Breathing was becoming hard but I didn't care.

It didn't seem like she cared either.

She pulled away first, her chest moving up and down like she really did need to catch her breath. Mine was probably doing the same. Her foreheads leaned together and she was looking down. "Whoa."

"Yeah." I was surprised either of us could even speak.

Melanie leaned her head to look at me. "I'm still leaving."

"I know," I said. "I just had to do that before you left."

She gave me a small smile and mirrored my words. "I know."

I gave her one back and she stood on her tiptoes, giving me another kiss but this one was shorter, quicker. My eyes closed and I pretended for a moment she wasn't leaving. But then I opened them and reality came back. "Bye, Melanie."

She picked up her bags again and opened the doors. Turning back to me, she said, "Good-bye, Jared."

Then she was gone. The door shut behind her and I went to it and peered out. Watching her walk away was probably one of the hardest moments of my life but there I was, letting that moment happen. She didn't even look back but her shoulders' movement give hints that she was crying. All I wanted was to bring her back here and wrap her in my arms.

Instead, I watched her until she turned a corner and disappeared. I shut the door and looked at the house. It felt so empty without Melanie in it. I just walked over to the couch and turned on TNT, and there was a movie on. I flipped on the on demand channel and put the newest episode of Castle on, because it was what we'd be doing right now if her dad hadn't seen her.


	11. Another new beginning

**Another one! This must be my fourth chapter in a week but the ideas are flowing and I'm getting to the big climax so I'm really excited to get more out there! Hope you like it.**

Melanie's POV

Riding the bus again. It's been a week since I left Jared's and I was going crazy. Just taking a bus ride, staying in a hotel and eating. That has basically been my schedule for the past week. Oh and thinking about Jamie and Jared. And Missing them. So yeah. I've been busy but not so busy.

Jared's last sentences still hung over me. He told me he was in love with me. He kissed me. A good kiss. Really great kiss even. He held onto me like he never wanted to let me go. I couldn't stop thinking about it. Not even when I was thinking about anything else.

It always came back to Jared.

_"You asked me before if I felt something for you. I lied. Melanie...I'm in love with you, Melanie. And I wanted you to know before you walked out that door and probably never see you again. I love you."_

I asked him straight out if there was more to it. And he lied. Because he didn't want it to be weird between us. He didn't want me to leave. And yet I did. I left him alone there with my dad looking for me and probably searching for Jared, trying to find out information about me or where I'd go.

I really screwed him over that night he found me. He would have been better off just walking past me and going inside his house.

I looked out the window of the latest place I was in. Some had been towns and some cities. But I'd been careful to not go back near Chicago and not too close to Lowell either. I was trying very careful this time to not let my dad find me and Jared was in Lowell, with my dad. So I needed a new route.

The bus stopped a few minutes later and everyone else on board stood up, ready to leave. I sighed and figured maybe I should, too. Once I was off, I stood there for a few minutes trying to figure out my next move.

I turned to start looking for a new hotel when I bumped into someone. "Oh!"

The girl backed up and was almost blushing. "I'm so sorry. I'm so clumsy sometimes."

"No, it's okay," I said to her. She was pretty, blonde and looked around my age give or take a few years. "It was probably my fault more than yours anyway."

She smiled. "Maybe it was both of us."

She laughed and I laughed with her. "Maybe."

"Oh! I'm Wanda, by the way," the girl said, holding out her hand for me. "Wanda Martin."

"Melanie Stryder," I replied, dropping my bags and shaking her hand.

"Hi, Melanie," she said. "I'm not usually this weird by the way."

"You're not weird at all," I said back.

Wanda laughed again. "Are you new in town? I don't think I've ever seen you before."

Instead of getting into my whole story, I gave her the short version. "Yeah, I actually just got off the bus."

She nodded. "Wow. Do you know where you're gonna go?"

"No, not really," I looked around. No hotels in my line of vision yet.

"This might be crazy but..." she gave me a shy look. "I have an extra room in my apartment. I mean, I live with my boyfriend so it's understandable and I'm really a stranger. But if you need somewhere to stay..."

Wow. Crazy maybe but considering how I met Jared and stayed there for almost a month. Maybe not so crazy. "I can't ask you to do that."

"Oh," she nodded. "That's okay."

She started to walk in a different direction so I spoke again, stopping her. "But...if you insist."

Wanda smiled at me. She was obviously happy that she made a new friend. "Okay. Come on. It's this way."

We started walking the way she had wanted to go. "Hey, where are you anyway?"

"Momence," she answered.

I nodded, trying to calculate. Then I figured it didn't matter. Because maybe just maybe if I did things differently this time, if i didn't call anyone back home, not even use my cell phone, maybe they can't figure it out. Maybe the trail my dad had been forming to get to me would turn cold. It was all I could hope for.

We reached her building and I had to admit it was a really nice building. She was on the second floor she told me and we took the stairs to it. "I only really take the elevator if I'm really tired or have stuff to carry," she admitted as we walked up.

I nodded and opened the door to enter the floor. Wanda pointed the direction out to me and I followed her. "Are you all right with your bags?"

"Yeah," I answered. Before we came into the building, Wanda carried one of my bags for me and my suitcase and other bag were pretty easy to hold even on steps. Plus my purse was just slung over my shoulder. "They're actually pretty light."

Wanda laughed. "Yeah this one is too."

She put the bag down when we walked past two doors. Her keys jaggled and I wondered what I got myself into. The door opened and holy shit. The apartment was huge. A big living room started my path in and to each side was a door and another near the back wall on my left. Wow.

Wanda looked back at me sheepishly, looking for a reaction. "What do you think?"

I was speechless. "I think...wow." We both walked in the room and I stared at the walls around me and the kitchen on the right. "This place must be expensive."

"Yeah, well, I'm an only child," she shrugged as if it were no big deal. "My dad's got money and he helps out."

"I don't want to be nosy but...just wow," I said to her and let out a laugh. It felt nice to know there was fathers out there who cared about his daughter. "What's he do?"

"He's a lawyer, actually," she answered. "He does small cases, not like murders but other kinds. I never really asked about what kind he gets but he gets paid good."

"Wow," I said again. I didn't really know what else to say.

Wanda just laughed and walked over to the left side bedroom door. "This would be your room. The other one is me and my boyfriend, Ian's."

I nodded. I wonder when I'd met Ian. She opened the door and the room was amazing. It was a little bigger than my room at Jared's and definitely bigger than my old room at home. We both put my bags down and just stood there.

"Do you want something to eat?" she finally asked.

"No, that's all right," I said. "But can I maybe have some iced tea? Do you have any?"

"We do," she nodded and walked to the kitchen, into the fridge and grabbed me a bottle. "This okay?"

"It's perfect," I said and took a sip. Refreshing and cold. Just what I needed.

"So..." Wanda started and sat down on the couch. "Since you're living here now, we should get to know each other, don't you think?"

"That's a good idea," I agreed.

She asked first. "Where are you from?"

I considered lying but then crossed that off. "Chicago."

"City girl," she smiled. "You'll fit right in here."

I smiled back. "What about you? Where are you from?"

"New York City, actually," she laughed. "My parents still live there too. But Ian was there at NYU and was going to come back here when he graduated. He grew up here. So last year we moved out here and I go to the university here."

Hearing more about her and Ian made me smile. "How'd you two meet? You and Ian?"

She blushed and smiled. "I was actually gonna go to NYU too so I decided to check out the place. Ian and me kind of did what you and me did - we bumped into each other and he dropped his books. I wanted to help but he said he couldn't ask a beautiful girl to pick them up for him."

I smiled too. "Aww."

"He asked me if I was a student there," she continued. "I said no but I wanted to be. He told me he was done for the day and asked if I would like to go for dinner with him. My mom was excited and so was my dad actually. I never really dated before so he was glad for me. But then I didn't get in."

My smile faded. "I'm sorry."

"Nah, it's fine," Wanda replied. "Because I got in here and Ian got to come home. And we're together. That's the best part of it all."

"Yeah, that is," I agreed and gave her another smile.

Her words made me sad though. Was Jared that person for me? Did I just screw up the most important relationship I could have? Np. I pushed the thought aside. Once I turn eightteen, I would go back to him and my dad wouldn't be able to do anything even if he finds me because I'd be an adult.

We'd find our way back together. I just knew it.

Time passed and I asked her question after question about her family and Ian. Her parents sounded great, she had an aunt and cousin but her uncle died years ago. That made me think of my aunt and uncle, Jeb and Maggie. I hadn't seen them in years though.

Just as Wanda turned to me and asked what my story was, the door opened. Her face beamed as she jumped up off of the couch and to the man in the doorway. It must be Ian.

She hugged him tightly and he hugged her back, still managing to shut the door behind him. Ian turned his head towards me and I got a good look at his face. First of all, he seemed clueless to who I was. But second of all, he actually was pretty good-looking.

Wanda must have sensed the question forming in his head and let go. She looked at me. "Ian, this is Melanie. Melanie, Ian."

"Hi," I said from across the room by the couch.

Ian walked over to me and Wanda followed. "Hi."

"Melanie's new in town," Wanda explained. "So I told her she could stay here with us. Is that okay?"

Ian looked at me then back at his girlfriend. "Yeah. It's fine."

"Good!" She exclaimed and gave him a short kiss. "I'm gonna get us the takeout menus or...do you want food out or here?"

I didn't really want to intrude so I said what I thought was best. "It doesn't matter to me."

"Let's get food out," Ian answered. Wanda nodded then left the room to get the menus. Ian walked closer to me. "So you met Wanda first here. That's pretty much the best greeting."

He gave me a smile now and I his voice told me another part of why Wanda was with him. It was very calming. "Yeah. We actually kind of smacked right into each other."

He laughed. "We did that too when we met."

"She told me about that," I told him. "I actually heard a lot about you before you got here."

"I deny it all," he joked.

Wanda came back in the living room with a handful of booklets. The menus. We ended up ordering chinese food and sat around the living room. But then Wanda spoke. "Melanie, you never got to tell me about where you were before here."

I almost dropped my food I was holding in my lap. "Well I was born in Chicago."

Ian smiled. "Another city girl!"

Wanda laughed. "No, after. How did you get here?"

Her question was innocent but a thousand emotions flooded through me as she asked. I swallowed through. "I decided to do some exploring since me and my dad didn't always get along. He thought it was a good idea, actually."

Okay so I lied. They obviously didn't need my whole drama on the first night we met.

"Then you came here?" Ian asked.

I shook my head. "No, I was over in Lowell, actually. I have a friend who lives there and I stayed with him. But I wanted to travel around the state some more so I came here."

"That sounds nice," Wanda sighed. "Just going around the state like that. Me and you gotta try that, Ian."

"Maybe someday," he smiled at her.

A random question came to my mind. "How are you guys anyway? Wanda told me she was gonna go to NYU and you were already a student there when she applied."

"Well this one over here," Ian ruffled Wanda's blonde hair and she made a face, "just turned twenty a few months ago. Me, now I'm 24."

I nodded. "It's really sweet you guys found each other so early."

"Yeah it is," Wanda stared at Ian's face then looked back to me. "How bout you, Melanie? How old are you?"

"17," I answered.

"Graduate early?"

"Uh-huh."

Wanda leaned forward. "What about a guy? Or girl, I'm not here to judge."

"There was a guy recently," I said slowly. "But that's not happening anymore."

"Oh," her face fell.

"And with boy talk," Ian stood up. "I think it's time for me to go elsewhere."

Wanda's face gave a pout and he kissed her quick then went into their room. "Okay. Now tell me. What happened?"

"He thought he was too old for me," I shrugged. "And by the time we realized there were actual feelings, we got separated."

"College?"

"Not exactly."

"Hmm." She leaned back and sat like she had been before Ian left. "Age doesn't matter when it comes to love, you know."

I nodded. "I know."

"What about before..."

"Jared," I filled in.

"Jared. What about before Jared?" she asked. "Was there ever anyone else?"

"Well yeah," I replied. "There had been a couple of guys but it didn't feel like it felt with him, you know. He made me feel like like I was the only girl in the world."

She smiled. "Like Ian makes me feel."

"Yeah," I smiled back. "But it doesn't matter. I'm never gonna see him again." Wanda was shaking her head. "What?"

"If there's anything I learned," she said, "It's that if it's real love, it finds its way back. If you and Jared have something real, you will see him again."

"What if he can't find me?" I whispered.

"He'll find a way to, then," she whispered back. Then she looked at the clock and gasped. "Shit. I have to get ready to go to bed. My shift starts at 5 am tomorrow morning."

5a am? "Where do you work?"

"A diner," she laughed. "I know. I could get so much better with a rich father. But I want to manage a restaurant so you gotta start somewhere while you're learning, right?"

"Right," I agreed.

Wanda stood up with her garbage in hand. "You staying up much longer, Melanie?"

"Probably not," I considered. "Maybe just a little bit longer."

She gave me half a smile. "Good night just in case."

"Night," I waved at her.

And off she was into the bathroom. I looked around the huge, now empty room. I cleaned off the food and plates, dishes, utensils. After I was finished with that stuff, I went into the bedroom I was staying in.

I pulled out my phone first from my purse. The screen lit up and it showed me a picture of me and Jared. I thought it'd be cool if we had pictures together and this one, we tried to look vicious in. I was pulling some kind of lion grr face and he - well, I didn't know what the hell he was going for honestly.

The picture made me smile. Or cry. It depended on my mood as I looked at it. Staring at his face on the screen made me want to call him. But everytime I did this, I had to remind myself that I wasn't going to call anyone anymore. No one my dad could connect with me or where I'd gone to. My heart squeezed and I tossed the phone across the bed.

I couldn't look at that picture anymore. Not tonight at least.

Instead I pulled one of my bags closer and pulled out some clean clothes and pajamas. I waited for Wanda to come out of the bathroom after I changed. When I heard the door open then another door, the one to her and Ian's room open and close, I went into the bathroom myself.

When I got back into the bedroom, I laid down in bed, pulling my phone back to me. Despite what I said, I stared at the picture again. We had been happy. Sure, lying about feelings, but happy. I missed Jared like crazy.

I went into my contacts. There his name was. _Jared Howe. _I should just title him the missing other half of my heart. I mentally kicked myself, reminding myself that it was me who left him, not the other way around. That just made me more miserable.

I wondered what he was doing right now. I wondered what he had done this past week. Obviously he would have gone to work. Of course. But what else? Did he think about me? Was he trying to distract himself? Maybe he was hanging out with Brandt or having to deal with Kyle again. Maybe my dad found him. I refused to believe Jared was stuck in some police interrogation to find me.

But the last time I saw replayed once again in my mind. The way he kissed me and I had forced myself even closer to him. I felt like we weren't touching enough. I needed more of him. And he told me he loved me. He was in love with me. Just like I told him I loved him too. It would have been perfect if I hadn't left.

I kept thinking of Jared up until my eyes closed and I eventually fell asleep.

**Leave a review :)**

**And how was the intro of Wanda and Ian? Let me know!**


	12. One missed call

Melanie's POV

My eyes opened slowly. I looked at the ceiling first and then the walls. Smiling to myself, I sat up and stretched. There was a good feeling in me today. Shuffling out of my room, I smelt pancakes. Chocolate chip. My favorite. Sighing I took another breath and kept on walking.

The sight in front of me stopped my breath. Jared. He was right in front of me. If I walked just a little bit closer, I could touch him.

He turned and saw me, a big smile appearing on his face. "Morning, Melanie."

"Morning," I said, the words almost caught in my throat.

Jared came towards me with that huge smile still on his face and put his arms around my waist. He leaned down and kissed me gently. But not entirely gentle either because it wasn't a closed kiss. He pulled back and stared at me.

"What's going on?" I was still a little breathless by the sight of him and then the kiss. I was surprised I could even speak.

He unwrapped his arms around me and stood in front of his counter. "What's it look like? I'm making breakfast for my girlfriend."

My mouth almost popped open. "But -"

"I know," he shook his head and smile still in place. "You told me not to worry about feeding you in the morning when I have work. But I thought you might make an exception today."

"Wh-why?" I stammered. "What's today?"

"Your promotion," he answered as if it were the most obvious thing in the world. "You're a manager now. Melanie, what's wrong?"

"Nothing," I smiled and it was my turn to shake my head now. "Nothing is wrong. Everything is absolutely perfect."

"Good."

I walked towards him and stood on my toes to give him a quick kiss. He then looked at the clock and it marked the time he would leave for work. He untangled himself from me and smiled. "We'll continue this later?"

"Yes," I laughed.

He nodded and turned to leave but as he had stood in the open door, he turned back to look at me. "I love you."

"I love you, too," I replied. And he was out the door.

Now my eyes really opened. I turned over to put my head facedown on the pillow and felt the urge to cry. It felt real. Jared holding me, kissing me and telling me he loved me. Even the pancake smell seemed so real.

Why did this have to happen? Every night I dreamed of Jared. Different dreams each time. I wanted it to stop but at the same time, I didn't. I would never get over the guilt I feel about leaving Jared even if I did get over him.

I got up for real this time and saw Wanda standing at the counter. I'd been staying here for five days now and she had already gotten me a job at the diner she waitresses at. I was grateful to Wanda for so many things it seemed like.

As soon as she noticed me, she stood up straight and smiled. "Hey."

"Hey." I walked over to get a cup of coffee. "Today's a later shift?"

"Not that much later," she answered. "We're on til 7 today."

I nodded. "Okay, good."

"I made sure Ian knows since it's not the usual hours," she shrugged. "He's still sleeping."

I laughed. "I'm a little surprised. Usually he's up before me."

Now Wanda laughed. "Not today."

I looked at the clock. 8:24. "When do we have to be in?"

"Nine," she answered. "Is that enough time?"

"Yeah, it's fine," I replied. Wanda gave me another smile and sipped more of her own coffee. I drank the rest of mine and went back to my room to get my stuff ready for a quick shower.

Once I was in there, I left the water run down my body as I closed my eyes and relaxed. I was still thinking of that dream. That, in turn, led me to thinking about the last time I saw Jared. Again. I really needed to get him out of my head.

I finished my shower, pushing aside thoughts of what I left behind and got dressed. My uniform was simple. They let me chose my own outfits as long as it wasn't too crazy or offensive. So I just usually picked jeans and a random blank tee shirt. There. Simple.

When I walked back out of the bathroom, Ian was now up and sitting close to Wanda at the small table they had. They were holding hands and leaning towards each other. I felt like I was invading. Instead, I walked back to my room and turned on my phone. Even though I promised myself no more calls on it, I still checeked for messages.

The light lit up and it beeped. There was a message. I checked who it could be from and my heart stopped. Jared called me. And he left me a voicemail. No, _no_. I needed to not be thinking of him, not listening to his voice on a phone I'm not even supposed to be using.

I turned the phone off and stashed it in my purse. Wanda was now standing up while Ian sat at the table eating his breakfast. He gave me a smile as I passed and I returned it. Time had really moved since last time I checked. "Whoa, Wanda. It's almost time for us to go."

Her eyes followed mine. "Oh, shit! I have to go get some stuff done before."

She raced to her own bedroom, kissing Ian fast and shutting the door behind her. "She has daily morning routines."

"I thought she might," I nodded.

He laughed and stood up, walking to the sink and washing his bowl. "She's just running late because of me. We were talking about her mom."

I leaned against the counter beside him. "What about her mom?"

He shrugged and turned to face the same direction I was. "She doesn't really like that her father approves of this."

"This?" I asked and he gave me a look. Oh. Him and Wanda. I understood. "Oh. She doesn't like you and Wanda living together, does she?"

"Not one bit," he replied. "But her parents are divorced. Go figure, huh? They fought her whole childhood."

"Wow," I whispered. Before I had only thought a death of a parent could make for a hard childhood. I never considered if they didn't get along anymore. "I'm surprised Wanda came out of that so nice."

"Well she's got a lot of her dad in her," he smiled at me. Obviously Ian had met her father.

Just at that moment, Wanda came out of the room and walked right to us. "Okay," she sighed. "All set."

I waved goodbye to Ian and he did the same. Wanda kissed him goodbye and we headed out the door. The car ride was the same as usual, us flipping through the radio until we find a good song. Then we make up insane lyrics that make no sense over the real ones.

By the time we got to work, we were early and I sighed in relief because the traffic wasn't too bad today. For a city, there was sure a lot of cars on the road.

The boss, Doc as we called him, was glad we got in easy and said how it was a packed place today. "You could have had us come in if you needed us," I pointed out.

"Nah," he laughed. "The rest of the staff handled in fine. There wasn't any need to force you in any sooner."

"Well, all right," I said jokingly to him. We got along pretty well to understand each other's sarcasm.

"You crack me up, Melanie," he said as he walked into the back.

And just like that, I started working. My tables were easy today and Wanda made faces at me whenever we passed each other. Thankfully having a full house today didn't make walking with plates of hot fries and etc too hard.

When I got my first break, I just used it to eat a cheeseburger. The food here was delicious so I always ate what I could take. I stared at my purse like I could burn holes through it. That message was in there and it killed me knowing he left one. It had been almost two weeks since I left Jared. What did he want to say now? At this point after I took off?

I shook my head. Not now. I finished off my food and went right back to work.

There was some obnoxious guys at a table Wanda had when I went back out there. I looked at her and knew there wasn't much we could do. We couldn't be rude, we were the staff. I decided to go get Doc.

"Doc?" I said when I walked where his desk was. And yes, he has a desk in a diner.

He looked up. "Yeah?"

"There's some creeps over at table three," I said. "They're hassling Wanda. What do I do?"

"I'll take care of it," he said and stood up, walking out to where she stood near the table.

I felt struck in the moment then finally started moving out that door. By the time I got out there, Doc was speaking in a low voice but even from here, I could tell it was threathening.

Wanda looked at me like 'What did you do?' but then she turned back to our boss and the customers. The first guy stood up, throwing cash on the table and his two friends followed. I mimicked an applause as Doc walked back toward me.

"Problem solved," he said.

Wanda then gave me a grateful smile and went back to work. So did I.

xxxxxxx

Another break. I almost believed I really did burn a hole in my purse this time. I gave up. It didn't matter anymore. It's like I was using the phone for calls. He couldn't track without a GPS and he definitely couldn't track listening to a voicemail.

I turned the phone again, almost impatient this time to hear it. The picture I had of me and Jared didn't help much.

"Melanie, hi," Jared's voice spoke through the phone. My breath caught and I imagined him sitting on his couch talking into his phone. "It's been over a week now. Can't you call at least? Tell me how you are?"

I closed my eyes and his voice continued. "I haven't seen your father since the day you left, Mel. Maybe he's gone. Maybe he's still around looking for you. But he hasn't come banging down my door yet demanding to know where you are. Maybe it's a sign. You could have stayed, Mel. Here. With me."

My eyes stayed closed and I felt ready to break. "I'm going to find you," his voice sounded more determined this time. "I already started to. But I'm going to find you, Melanie. It doesn't end like that."

I agreed but my throat felt dry. It's not like he could hear me anyway. "Bye, Melanie. I love you."

And that was it. I curled myself into a ball, trying to hold my tears in. I hadn't actually cried over Jared since the night I left. I worked very hard not to. Now it was all going to crash down. Because I was desperate enough to listen to the message.

Maybe I didn't need to leave. If my father hadn't been around since that day - No. He could just not have figured it out yet because she's not in town anymore. And she didn't know too many people in town. Just Jared, Wes, and Kyle really. As bad as Kyle was, she didn't think he would squeal on her.

So maybe that was why Jared was safe from him. He might still be in Lowell, just trying to find out information and not succeeding because I left and he didn't even know Jared's name. Yeah. That had to be it. I sighed.

I stood up, straightened myself out and wiped my eyes. I couldn't do this and especially not right now. I went right back to work.

xxxxxxx

"Hey," Wanda came up to me as I put my jacket on once shift was over. "A few of my friends wanna go out tonight. Wanna come?"

"Yes," I said without any thinking. "Sure."

She smiled. "Good. Because you've been here for days and you haven't met three of my best friends yet."

"I can't wait."

We got into her car and drove to a bar. There was three girls waiting outside and they waved when the car got closer. As soon as we were out of the car, Wanda started introducing me to them.

Their names were Alison, Mary and Tasha. Tasha had bright red hair that was in a ponytail and the other two were brunette. They welcomed me right in with hugs.

Mostly they talked about boys or what they were doing in their lives. Me? Honestly I didn't really know what I was doing with my life. Especially not with all this running away. I couldn't answer that either. I let them talk while I sipped at my drink. I didn't even know what it was. Mary had ordered it for me, promising I'd like it. So far she was right.

"Melanie, what about you?"

I snapped to reality and looked at the direction the voice came from. It was Alison. "What about me what?"

The girls laughed and Alison explained for me. "A boyfriend. Do you have one?"

Wanda shook her head. "She's not seeing him anymore."

"Thanks a lot, Wanda," I teased. She laughed.

Tasha pouted. "What happened?"

"I left," I shrugged, trying to play it off. "I couldn't stay in that town anymore. It felt like I suffocating there."

"But the guy!" Mary exclaimed. "How could you leave someone you care about?"

"I don't even know how I did honestly," I said and took another sip of my drink. "It was probably stupid."

"Well where is he now?" Alison asked.

"Same place he was when I left him," I answered.

"Go back to him then," she urged.

I shook my head. "It's not that simple."

"It always is that simple, sweetie," Mary leaned forward and whispered. She then leaned back and I excused myself, grabbing my purse.

In the restroom, I stared at the picture of me and Jared together. It's that simple. I didn't entirely believe that but for some reason they did. It had to mean something. I looked through my contacts again, this time so close to calling Jared's number.

But I can't. I won't.

I shoved the phone back in my purse and hid my face in my hands. "You can do this. You don't break down and especially not over a guy," I whispered to myself and stood up, opening the door of the stall.

And came face to face with Wanda.

"I came to see if you were okay," she said. "Are you?"

I nodded and walked to the sink. "Yeah, I'm fine."

She followed and stopped right beside me. "Did I overstep out there? Mentioning him?"

"No, you didn't," I explained. "It's just - I checked my phone today and I had a voicemail from him. Thinking about him right now, especially talking about him -"

She cut me off. "I get it. Don't worry. Do you want to go home?"

"No," I said. "Let's go back out there and have some fun."

Wanda smiled and put her arm through mine as we walked back to our table.


	13. The run in

**Jared's POV**

I felt like an idiot. Again. I probably checked my phone too many times a day hoping for a response back from Melanie. She wasn't gonna call back. I felt stupid enough begging on her voicemail for her to call me back but getting nothing in return felt even dumber. It had been days. She wasn't going to answer.

I stashed my phone away again and went right back to work. Brandt gave me questioning looks but otherwise kept quiet.

When my lunch break came though, he didn't seem to want to be silent anymore.

"Man, now what's going on with you?" He asked as he sat next to me. "First, you had a girl in your house and you were distracted and now here we are, weeks later, and you're going off to space again. What, are there two girls staying at your place now?"

'No," I laughed. "There is definitely not two girls at my house."

"Well then what is it?" he asked. "Because you need to be concentrating, not getting distracted. What if we build something unstable?"

"I don't actually build," I stated.

"Fine," he said. "What if your blueprints are wrong?"

"They're fine," I said.

He was quiet for a few seconds but then looked at me, serious. "Really, man. What's going on? Is it about that girl, Melanie?"

"Yeah." I really needed a cigerette right now. "She left."

"She left?" he almost exclaimed. "How come?"

I shrugged not wanting to tell her secrets. "It got too much for her to be in this place, I guess."

"It got to be too much," he questioned, "or you did?"

I wanted to hit him. "It wasn't like that. Not exactly."

He gave me a look. "Then what was it like? Did Mr. She's-too-young-for-me do something about it?"

"No," I replied. "And if I was you, I wouldn't be saying anything because you told Kyle she was staying with me."

"I told you I slipped," he defended. "I thought he knew! He came to me, asking about this girl named Melanie you're hanging out with."

"And you just happen to add 'Oh yeah and she's living over at his house' without thinking he's the wrong person to tell that to?" I countered.

"Maybe I wasn't thinking at all?"

I laughed. "That sounds right."

He laughed then, probably figuring out how much I didn't want to talk about Melanie or my love life anymore. Especially not at work of all places.

As I was heading to my Jeep after work, Brandt came up to me again. "I don't want to talk about it, Brandt."

"I only have one thing to say," he said. "That her leaving - maybe it's for the best. If she's distracting you this much. Maybe it's time to let it go, man, let her go."

He clapped his hand on my shoulder and walked off before I could say anything else. Maybe he was right. I got into my car and went home for the night.

xxxxxxxx

The next day was the same old thing. Quiet house. Breakfast alone. Went to work. Had a lunch break. Went back to work. And now I was heading back home when a car I didn't recognize was parked in my driveway where my Jeep would go. I pulled up to the other side of the driveway to make room.

The door of the car opened. Out walked a man, older than me and strangely familiar. Then I realized who he was. Oh shit. The passengar side door opened and out walked a kid I knew. Jamie. And he was with his father. Melanie's father.

Oh shit.

He strode towards me with confidence. Jamie stood nearby but behind him. I couldn't move. Mentally kicking myself for that message to Melanie about him, I tried to move. Where? I had no idea but I knew this was bad.

"Hello," Mr. Stryder said. "Jared, is it? It was very hard to find you, you know."

"Yeah?" I put hatred over the man who made Melanie feel so terrible in my voice. "And how did you exactly?"

"Well, apparently my daughter was smart in not telling me your name," he answered. "That made me take a little longer to get here, I hate to admit."

"Well I'm afraid you wasted the trip," I said and started walking closer to where her father stood. "Melanie's not here anymore."

He looked at the house then to Jamie and back to me. "How do I know you're not lying?"

"Because believe me or not," I shrugged. "I don't care. But she's not here. She left the day she saw you."

He laughed. "That sounds like something somebody might say to get rid of me."

"I guess it works as the truth and a helpful escape then," I snapped back.

Jamie stepped forward and stared at me. He looked as if he wanted to say something but he didn't with his father there. It made me wonder what it was.

Mr. Stryder sighed. "You must know where she is, though. So just tell me and I'll be on my way, Jared."

"I don't know where she is," I answered. At least Melanie left me with honesty.

"That's a lie."

"No, it's not," I snapped. "You don't even know me to assume I'm lying but then again, you didn't really know your daughter either."

Melanie's father's face fumed with anger. He looked ready to hit me but then looked at his young son at his side and uncurled his fist that I hadn't noticed."You seem to think you know a lot about me, don't you?"

I shrugged. "Maybe. Melanie didn't talk about you that much and when she did, it wasn't good."

Suddenly, his face turned almost crazy, he was even laughing. He walked closer to me and pointed his finger at my face. "If you're lying...if you know where she is, I will come back."

He started to walk away then and go back to his car but then he turned around. "You know, I could just make this all simple and file a police report saying that you kidnapped my daughter. And maybe say that she escaped from you, running off somewhere else where you wouldn't think to look for her. It's all really simple, actually."

"You have nothing to prove any of that," I spat. This guy was really pissing me off. What a dick.

"I have friends, Mr. Howe," he chuckled. "If it'd help me find my daughter, I can do anything I want."

"Well it's a great plan," I lied. "One thing wrong with it though."

His smile turned to a curious look. "Oh yeah? What's that?"

I walked closer this time. "If you really care about your daughter, I mean really care, you're gonna push her away if you do something like that."

"You really think that much about yourself?" he countered. "I'm her father. You're just some guy she was shacking up with. It doesn't compare."

I ignored the shacking up comment. "That's what you think."

He nodded, smirk back in place. "If anything happens to my daughter, Mr. Howe, it's on you. If I don't find her safe and healthy and with any kind of injury, I will personally hold you responsible for it."

I nodded, ready to laugh. "_If_ you find her."

"Oh I will," he promised then started walking back to the driver's side door. "Come on, Jamie."

Jamie looked after his father then at me. He'd be silent the whole time but I could tell his father's threats to me got to him. The things I had said didn't bother it as much it seemed. I guess I knew what side he was on.

He then walked towards me and I leaned down to hear him better. "Jared. Can you do something for me?"

"Sure, buddy," I answered.

"When you find Melanie..." He paused then continued. "Will you tell her I miss her? And that if she can, to call me? I won't tell my dad I swear."

"I will," I promised. "Now get going. Don't wanna piss Satan off, huh?"

Jamie laughed then ran to his door. "Bye, Jared!"

"See ya, kid," I yelled back.

His father shot me a look through the mirror. He was already pissed I guess. Then he pulled out of the driveway and off into the distance.

I ran to my front door, unlocking it fast and heading right for my room. I grabbed a few things and threw them into a bag, feeling deja vu to when Melanie left. But this was different. I had to go find her.

Once my stuff was stashed away, I threw it into the jeep. I'd call Brandt tomorrow about work. It was a Friday anyway. The weekend could wait. I headed back to the bus station where I had gone so many times before asking if anyone there had seen Melanie. But no bullshit this time. I was gonna get answers.

There wasn't many people there but a different woman was at the register to buy tickets. Maybe that was a good sign. But before I approached her, someone came up to me. I turned when I heard my name and almost ran in the other direction. Kyle.

"What do you want?" I asked him.

"I wanted to apologize," he said as he got closer.

"You already tried that and failed, remember?" I really wasn't in the mood for his bull.

"No," he shook his head. "Not about before. This something else."

"All right," I said. "What'd you do now?"

"There was this guy asking about Melanie," he began. "He said how she was with a guy at a supermarket. The description sounded like you. So I wanted to get back at you for that hit the last time we saw each other. I didn't know Melanie ran from him."

"You told him about me?!" I yelled then lowered my voice. "It was you?"

Kyle nodded. "After I told him who you were, he said how he was gonna drag Melanie back home if he has. He thanked me for telling him who you were and went to go find you."

"When was this?" I asked.

He thought for a moment then answered. "I don't know. Maybe around lunch time?"

"How did he know to ask you?" I said. "Did you brag or something?"

"No, no," he swore. "Nothing like that. The man was asking everyone. He seemed really determined to find anything out. Some people even purposely avoided him because I guess they heard about him or were already asked."

I sighed. "Oh, man. Look, if you see the guy again, keep your mouth shut, all right? Don't say anything."

"Why should I do anything for you?"

"It's not for me," I replied. "You liked Melanie, right?" Kyle nodded. "Then do it for her. She doesn't want to go back with him. So just do it for her."

Kyle nodded again. "Okay."

"Thanks, man," I said and started walking away before he could say anything back. Maybe that friendship could even be saved. But first things first.

The girl was sitting there and reading a book behind the counter. She looked up when I came and her face turned from a scowl into a smile. Huh. Her nametag read Lucy. "Can I help you?"

"Yeah, actually you can," I said in a calm voice. "I'm looking for someone and I was wondering if anyone here might be able to help me out."

"Sure," she smiled. "What can I do?"

I pulled out my cell phone to a picture of Melanie I took when we were playing Battleship. She had found my game in her room closet and demanded we play. I couldn't refuse her.

Lucy looked at the picture and smiled. "I think I remember giving her a ticket."

I sighed in relief. "Do you think you can tell me where she went?"

"I'm not entirely sure," she bit her lip and looked around. "Hold on. I think I might have someone who could help you better."

"Okay," I smiled at her. "Thank you."

Lucy smiled back then went behind a door. When she came back, a man was with her. He had driven the bus Melanie was on when she left. He told me where he dropped her off and the two of them wished me luck as I headed back to my Jeep.

**Soooo what do you think? Opinions on Jared's search or about Melanie's dad? Leave a review! :)**


	14. Girls Day Out

Melanie's POV

I was exhausted. And more than ready for my two days off. There was another full house today and the food wasn't coming fast enough for those in a rush. I barely even had enough time for a break today.

Sighing, I unlocked the door to my new home and the first thing I noticed was it was loud. And kinda smokey too. Ian or Wanda didn't smoke but then my eyes followed the smoke in the air to the source. Aha. Ian had friends over and sure enough, one was smoking a cigar.

"Melanie!" Ian exclaimed once he noticed me. He had a bright smile on and casual clothes but with a visor on. Ah, they were playing poker. It all started to make sense. "Have you ever played poker?"

"Can't say I have, O'Shea," I shook my head with a smirk on my face.

"Hey, guys this is Melanie," he started to point them out when he said their names, "Melanie, this is Burns, Geoffrey and Heath."

"Hey, guys," I waved at them and went to the kitchen for some water.

"Melanie?" I turned back head back to the guys. The one Ian named as Heath was calling me. "Why don't you play? We can teach you how to."

"Nah," I shook my head as I walked back to the table. "I wouldn't be any good."

"You might have fun," Burns suggested.

I looked between all the guys and smiled. "Okay. I'm in."

Ian stopped explaining the rules of the games and the hands you hold. It was semi easy to remember and I got my cards and was shocked. I was pretty sure I had a Full House. The guys laid down their cards and looked at me. I laid mine out too and their faces changed immiediatly.

"You won," Ian said in a low voice.

"I did?" The boys nodded. "Not bad for a first game, huh?"

"That was not your first game," Geoffrey whined.

"Was so," I beamed. I really was proud of myself. "But I think I should end the game early, save you boys the money, don't you think?"

"Yeah," Heath agreed. "Maybe one game was good."

I gave a fake pout. "Oh, come on, guys! Where's all the tough guys who wanted me to play a game with them?"

"Hoping you don't steal anymore money," Geoffrey cracked.

I laughed. "Afraid of a little girl, huh, _Geoff_?"

Ian and Burns cracked up. Heath joined in and gave me a smile. Geoffrey sat up straight. "No. Of course not."

"Good," I leaned back in my chair. "But, lucky, for you, I really am tired."

Heath looked ready to protest. "So soon?"

"Yeah," I made a face. "Sorry, boys."

Then I grabbed my winnings and stood up. With a smile I walked over to my room. Not too long later, there was a knock on my door. I half expected it to be Heath. But when I opened it, I was surprised to see Wanda there.

"Hey," I said. "When'd you get home?"

"Just now," she shrugged as she walked in.

I tried to look behind her but the door closed too fast. "Ian's friends still here?"

"Yeah," she replied. "But I think they're getting ready to go. They've been here for three hours."

"Seriously?" I let out a laugh. 

Wanda nodded. "I had no idea he was inviting company over tonight. Heard you beat them on your first try."

"Yeah, it wasn't really my first try," I whispered. She gasped. "Ssh. Don't tell them."

"Melanie." And she was laughing now.

"What?" I shrugged now. "I played at some parties I went to before. They didn't need to know that."

Wanda kept laughing then she straightened up. "I can't believe Ian lost to a girl who he thought didn't know how to play but really did."

"If only he knew," I laughed.

She sobered up and leaned against the wall. "Hey, since we both have tomorrow off, wanna do something together?"

"Yeah," I perked up. "Like what?"

"Go shopping maybe," she shrugged. "Or we could do something else."

"No," I said. "Shopping sounds like fun."

"Okay, good," she beamed. "Tomorrow."

"Tomorrow," I repeated.

xxxxxxxxx

Walking out of my bedroom stunned me. There right in front of me, standing in Wanda and Ian's kitchen was Jared. "Jared?"

"I'm gonna find you, Melanie," he said to me in the same voice that he spoke in the voicemail.

I walked closer to him. "What are you doing here? I left you over two weeks ago."

"I told you I'm gonna find you," he just said.

"Why do you keep saying that?" He was starting to get on my nerves.

"Your dad's not here," he said. Finally. Something different. "He hasn't come by. You're safe."

I shook my head. "I doubt that. I'll never be safe while I'm not legally an adult."

"We can make it work," he pleaded. "I'm gonna find you."

"Jared," I shook my head. "How are you gonna -"

Then he changed. I didn't just mean personality or temper-wise. He changed. Into my father. I gasped. He let out a chuckle that sent chills down my arm.

"Hello, Melanie."

My mouth felt dry and I started backing up back into my bedroom. "What - what are you doing here?"

"Silly girl," he chuckled. "You thought you could get far without me finding you?"

"Well -"

"Of course you can't!" He said. "And I'm coming for you, sweetheart. I"m gonna find you."

I sprang up from my bed, panting and gasping. I looked around my room and scanned it in the darkness. I was alone. Of course. It was just a nightmare. Jared's not here. My dad is definitely not here. I sighed and looked over at the clock. 3: 17 am. It was too early to wake up.

Sighing again, I laid back down and closed my eyes. Hopefully sleep will come without nightmares like that this time.

xxxxxxxx

The next morning was much more peaceful than me dream. I woke up, Ian made me and Wanda breakfast - simple bagels and omlets. He gave me and Wanda each a smile as we finished up and got ready to. He drove, of course, since it was his car. Wanda sat up front with him and changed the radio stations just like she did when we drove together.

And me? Well I was in the backseat. Obviously.

I watched the two of them as they laughed and even attempted to sing together. I took out my cell phone while they acted as a couple with me as their third wheel. I felt guilty for even thinkingthat, after all they'd done for me in the past week but it was from a good place. I was invading on their time, time that should be for them but instead was stuck with me. I hoped someday I could repay them.

My phone buzzed to life and once again, the picture of me and Jared appeared on the screen. That goofy face automatically made me smile as soon as I saw it. I went into my photos and looked at the rest of that set. Something I hadn't been able to do since leaving. A smile crept on my face as I looked at all the silly faces Jared tried to make.

God, I missed him.

There was random pictures we took. I even got a shot of that time he fell asleep on the couch after checking the news. He looked so cute. I just had to do it. When I showed him the picture the next day, he vowed he would get back to me. A laugh silently slipped as I wondered if he did get me back.

Then I reached another one that I took while Jared was making dinner. He was standing in front of the sink, turning around at me just when the shutter clicked. He didn't even know I was right there. But he laughed anyway and gave me a breathtaking smile. This memory lane thing was making me more sad than I wanted it to.

I shoved my cell back into my purse, not wanting to see anymore of those pictures. I was already regretting looking at them.

We finally reached the mall Wanda told me about. It was pretty big. More than two floors and long. I sighed. Just what I needed.

When we went in the first store, Ian politely stepped out, not wanting to stand by while us girls try on clothes and gossip. Wanda laughed at him and gave him a goodbye kiss, sending him on his way.

We checked out all these outfits and tried them on. After one of the times Wanda came out of her dressing room, she decided to start a conversation.

"How are you doing about everything?"

"Like what?" I questioned walking out of mine.

"The stuff with Jared," she answered. "The message."

"I haven't stopped thinking about him since I listened to it," I sighed and sat down.

Wanda came to sit beside me and shrugged. "So call him."

"I can't," I argued.

"Why not?" I forgot she didn't know everything.

So I decided to tell her. I went into detail about how I felt about Jared, leaving my family, leaving my little brother and my friends. What happened with my stepmother. Everything just came pouring out. When I was finally finished, Wanda had such a surprised look on her face, I thought she might run screaming.

But she didn't. Instead, she hugged me. "Oh my God."

"You're not disappointed?"

"No!" she exclaimed. "Why would I be?"

"Because I lied," I replied. I was sure my face showed my confusion. "I didn't tell you all of it and worse than that, what actually is the truth. For all I know, my crazy father is gonna come here and pin something on you."

She shook her head, face calm. "No, he won't. And besides, you have a lot of people standing behind you."

"I don't think I have Jared on my side anymore," I muttered.

"Sweetie," she put her hand over mine and didn't say the word in the annoying way most people had said it to me. "Jared loves you. Of course he's on your side."

I shrugged, barely able to talk after everything I had to admit to. So I just nodded and hoped that would be good for now.

"I understand why you didn't tell me," Wanda said after a few moments of silence. I looked up at her. "You were in a rough position. I'm sure I would have done the same thing if I was you."

"Really?" I asked.

"Sure." She smiled at me. "And you told me now. That's what matters. I'm glad you did."

"You know what?" I said. "So am I."

Wanda hugged me then and I hugged her back. It felt right telling her. Maybe the people I was meeting since I left, maybe it was fate we met after all.

"You know," she said. "I bet if you went to see Jared, he'd be really happy to see you again."

"Maybe," I let out a laugh. "But it's probably not gonna happen anytime soon."

"Well, who knows?" she laughed. "You never know."

"Right," I laughed and we went back to shopping.

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The day had been really fun after I got everything off my chest. Me and Wanda both had bought shoes, she got two pairs and I just got one. Ian spent most of his time down at the video game store and we all met up again to eat lunch together. I'd even say we were all closer than ever. The thought made me smile.

I crashed on my bed after taking a quick shower and fell right asleep. But now a knock was waking me up. I looked at my clock just like I had the previous night after my it was morning hours now. 8:03 am. I groaned and stood up, knowing I might as well actually get up even if I had no work today.

There was a note on my door from Wanda. She and Ian had gone out for breakfast then Alison wanted to meet up. She would have offered me to come but thought maybe I'd like some rest or to be alone after everything I confessed. I actually did kind of want that. But now the person knocking was here and it was getting on my nerves.

"Hold your horses," I half-shouted at the door. "I'm coming."

But when I swung the door open, I saw one of the last faces I expected to see right now, right here. The most gorgeous face I had ever seen. The name stuck on my tongue and was the only thing I could manage to say.

"Jared."

**SO? Did you like that ending to the chapter?**

**You had to know he would find her. Some hints were even left in this chapter, some in previous ones ;) **

**Stay tuned for the next chapter and leave a review :)**


	15. Reunited

Melanie's POV

I was stunned. I didn't really know what to say. Jared was standing right there. He was in front of me. I hadn't seen him in two weeks so maybe my imagination thought him up. But no. He was standing there, staring at me the way I'm staring at him. He has to be here.

But I had to know. "Am I dreaming?"

"No," he finally spoke. "I found you."

Oh no. That's what my dreams usually talked about. "You're really here?"

"I'm really here," he nodded with a smile filled with so much relief and happiness. I didn't think I could dream up that smile.

A smile crossed my own face and before I could say anything else - as if I could even think of anything else to say right now anyway - his lips were on mine. I was too shocked to react. This kiss was like the one before I left but it was fiercer, more urgent. Like he couldn't stop kissing me if he tried.

I finally snapped out of it. I kissed Jared back, my lips working perfectly with his. My arms wrapped around his neck and pulled me closer. I was sure I wouldn't be able to stop kissing him if I tried, either.

I backed myself up more into the apartment so we weren't making out halfway in the hall. Jared kicked the door shut behind him and I think my heart started racing more than it ever has.

His hands went on my waist and stayed there. They pressed down on me, holding onto me so I pressed myself more into his body. And man, did it feel good.

But no matter how good his hands or lips felt, I had something very important to ask him. My mind couldn't even form the words though. They felt stuck on my tongue but then his even took that away.

Jared lifted me off of my feet, my legs instantly wrapping around his waist. My arms stayed locked around his neck and his hands were now on my back. He never stopped kissing me the whole time. I let out a moan and he just kissed me harder.

We moved backwards to a wall and I had to admit, being pressed against a wall did not feel like what I imagined. It was better. Jared pressed himself closer to me and I didn't want it to stop. He took his lips off mine and gave me a look. He was asking me which room was mine. I nodded to the direction of mine and he carried me there.

Reaching the room, I kept thinking it'd stop. Like he'd realize how real it was getting and end it. Jared said that I was too young for him so I didn't expect this to last much longer.

But I was wrong.

Inside the room, we kept kissing. His hands roamed by back then stopping once they were on my butt, half holding me up. I could guess the other half was just enjoying it. My hands went to his shoulders. They were perfect shoulders. I resisted from keeping them there and followed them down his chest, holding onto his jacket.

Jared must have known what I was trying to do because he put me down and took his jacket off. He went right back to kissing me then. I didn't like being back on the ground, I missed his arms but his kiss pushed away thoughts like that as I focused on what was happening.

My hands went to the bottom of his t-shirt this time, trying to pull it up. He understood again and stopped kissing me, letting me pull it over his head. My breath caught as I looked him shirtless. He had to be the sexiest thing I ever set my eyes on. That just made me kiss him again.

I felt his smile against my mouth. I pulled back this time and he looked at me questionably like maybe it was my turn to doubt it. I just pulled my tank top over my head instead and his lips came down hard on mine again. I put my one hand on the back of his neck and the other was on his back. His were on my back, pulling me closer to him again. I could even tell it was aiming for my bra snap.

While pulling him closer, I pushed myself back and fell backwards on the bed. I laughed and Jared did too as he crawled to get on the bed too. I held him at a distance and unbuckled his jeans first, pulling them down once they were undone. He kicked them off when they were low enough and came back on top of me, capturing my mouth in another kiss.

He made sure he wasn't too heavy on top of me, leaning on his elbows. I crawled towards the pillows, all without breaking the kiss. His hands went through my hair, to my cheek, then to holding my hands. I held onto his hands and placed them on the strings on my pajama pants. He didn't need long to take the hint.

Jared sat up and pulled my pajamas down, slowly down my legs then tossed them to the floor. I laughed at him, earning a smile from him then used my index finger to tell him to come back. He didn't need anymore than that to get him back on the bed.

And so the best morning of my life happened.

xxxxxxxxx

I opened my eyes and a rush of memories hit me as I looked over at the man sleeping next to me. How could I forget Jared was here? More than that, how could I forget what happened? A smile crept to my face as I remembered the way he kissed me, how his hands had felt on my body, the sounds he got me to make...I almost considered waking him up just to relive it all again.

Instead, I brought my fingers over his chest, drawing little hearts all over it. I rised his chest rise and fall with his breaths, smiling that I had taken some of it away in the past hours.

He was really here. Jared had really come and found me. Just like he promised. And now...now we made love. It sounds cheesy and completely unlike me but it was exactly that. We were making love and it's the most amazing thing I have ever felt.

He stirred and my hearts stalled. His eyes slowly opened and my breath caught, more than ready to talk to him after the workout we'd done before falling asleep. A smile came to his face when he saw me staring at him. "Hi."

"Hi." I couldn't stop smiling but my hand went back to drawing hearts.

"How long have you been up?" he asked me.

"A couple minutes," I shrugged. "We should probably get up."

Jared looked over at my clock. "Yeah, you're probably right."

We each got up out of the bed and got dressed. He seemed to do it quicker. Either he was a fast dresser or he regretted earlier. I shook my head. I can't think about that right now. I had questions. One I'd been too preoccupied to ask when I first saw him at my doorstep. My insecurities will have to wait.

It felt strange to fall back into our usual rhythms after what happened. But we did. Jared asked me what I wanted and went right to the kitchen and started making me grilled cheese. I smiled at him as I watched him work, sitting on a stool by the counter, happy just being with him again. When he was done, he made himself one and handed me mine.

I picked at the edges, not entirely wanting to eat without him. His was soon ready and he came over to me, sitting beside me. He started eating right away. I stared at him. "What's wrong? Is the food not good?"

"No, no," I shook my head. "I'm just...still in shock that this isn't a dream."

Jared smiled at me. "It's not a dream, Mel."

"I know," I smiled back at him. "I'm...adjusting. How did you even find me?"

He stopped chewing and put his food down. "I talked to the people at the bus station pretty much every day. Hoping I'd find someone who saw you or remembered you."

"And you did just now?"

"Yeah," he answered. "It was usually the same girl there but the last time I went was a different girl. She tried to track down a driver for me and I did that in every town."

"You took every bus to find me?" I asked.

"Not exactly."

I frowned. "Then what'd you do?"

"I took my Jeep," he gave me a look that was surprised I'd think he'd leave it at home. "And I went to every town they directed me to, followed some confusing paths by the way." He gave me a smile mixed with a wink. "Asked every driver then did the same in the next town."

I nodded along as he spoke then let out a small laugh. "That simple? I was hoping to be some crazy trail you had to follow because you loved me so much."

"It sounds simple," he replied. "But it actually wasn't. And I did do it because I _love_ you so much."

I hadn't even realized I leaned forward until he was kissing me. I felt like I was gonna fall off my chair and that I wouldn't even care if I did. My arms wrapped around his neck just like they had earlier and his hands were in my hair.

When he pulled apart, I felt cold like I needed his hands back on me. "Your food's getting cold."

"I don't care," I managed to reply.

"You might care when you want to eat it," he joked.

Damn he was right. "Fine."

I slid back into normal sitting position and started to eat my grilled cheese. It actually was still warm and it made me want to stick my tongue out to Jared.

Instead we both finished our food. Once we were done, I turned to face him again. "Tell me more."

"About what?" He turned to face me too.

"Your search to find me," I said as if I should have said 'duh' after it. "You know, the big grand gesture."

"I just tracked you down, Mel," he said, looking embarrassed. "I didn't solve world peace."

I laughed. "I know _that_. But, I mean, come on. It's a big deal. You came after me."

Jared nodded. "I wanted to see you."

"You more than wanted to see me," I teased.

"Melanie..." he sighed and put his hands on mine. I turned them over so we were holding hands. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" I was so confused. "What for?"

"What happened earlier," he answered. "I shouldn't have let it get that far."

"Wait." Now it started to make sense. "You're apologizing for sleeping with me?"

I was about ready to hit him. "No. Not when you say it like that."

"Well then how would you say it?" I asked him.

"I'm older than you," he replied. Not that again. And especially not after what we just did. "I shouldn't have let that happen. Not like that, at least."

"So what? It wasn't romantic?" I questioned.

"It probably wasn't a dream time," he said.

I sighed and took my hands out of his. "Are you kidding me?"

"What?"

I stood up and gestured towards him. "This bullshit you used on me back in Lowell. That you're too old for me. You should have been thinking of that before you had sex with me, you know?"

"Hey," he stood up and came towards me, trying to take my hands again but I shook them away. "That _is not _what I'm saying."

"Then what exactly are you saying?" I asked in a yell. "Please tell me."

"I mean..." I gave him a questioning look and he searched for words. "It wasn't a dream_ first _time."

"First time?" I laughed. "Well you weren't a virgin and I wasn't a virgin so..."

"You weren't?" he asked me and I shook my head. "I don't know if I should be relieved or jealous."

I laughed again. "If you were anyone else, I would have kicked your ass for asking the virgin question that cleverly."

He looked shocked. "I wasn't trying to ask the -"

I put my hand up. "I know. It's fine." I sat down on the couch. "So which would you be?"

"What?"

"You said relieved or jealous," I stated. "Which would you be?"

He sat beside me. "Jealous."

I squinted my eyes at him. "Explain."

"isn't it obvious?" he asked me.

"Yeah, but I want to hear it from you," I explained.

I gave a gesture that the floor was his. He smirked at me. "Because I can't take the thought that anyone else had you. I don't want to even consider that thought."

I shivered at his words. The way he was staring at me...he even leaned closer as he spoke. I wanted him all over again.

But right then, the door opened. I heard a gasp and my head turned toward the door. There stood Wanda and Ian, both looking incredibly stunned and surprised. I quickly stood up and Jared followed me. "Hey, guys."

"Hi," Wanda managed. Ian had such a shit-eating grin on his face I thought he was gonna burst out with laughter.

"Wanda, Ian...this is Jared," I introduced. Wanda's eyes went wide then connected everything. "Jared, these are my roomates, Ian and Wanda."

Both of them walked forward and so did Jared. He shook Ian's hand and when he turned to Wanda, she hugged him. "I heard a lot about you, Jared Howe."

She smiled as they separated and he turned to me as if to ask 'You told her about me?' I gave a look that told him of course.

"Was it all good?" he asked her.

"Very," she smiled and grabbed Ian's hand. "We should do something. Go to dinner maybe."

"Yeah!" I agreed. "That would be a fantastic idea, Wanda."

She nodded and smiled at me. Ian spoke this time. "Where would we go?"

"Don't look at me," Jared said with his hands up in surrender. "I just got here."

"I might have a few ideas, then," Ian added.

"Okay, good," Wanda beamed. "I'm gonna get ready."

She began to walk to her room but then turned around. "Jared?"

"Yeah?"

"It's very nice to put a face to the name," she smiled.

"Better not think that face is prettier than mine," Ian whispered to me and I let out a small laugh. Jared looked at us and I made a goofy face at him.

xxxxxxxxx

Dinner was pretty easy. Ian took us to a Seafood restaurant and Wanda pretty much spent the whole time asking Jared questions about his life. You'd think she was trying to find out if he should have her approval or not. Then again, maybe she was.

When we came home, I felt exhausted. I didn't really know why. I had today off and I had enough sleep. Maybe I was just ready to go home and lie down with Jared. The boys were talking and sat down when we entered so Wanda pulled me aside.

"How are you doing with this?" she asked me.

"What, Jared?" She nodded. "I'm good. More than good, actually."

Wanda smiled at me. "Good. Because you look happier than I've ever seen you."

"We've only known each other a little more than week," I pointed out.

She play-slapped my arm. "You know what I mean."

"I do," I agreed. "But having Jared here...I don't know. I feel safer with him with me. Like nothing can hurt me as long as we're together. Does that make sense?"

She glanced over at Ian. "Yeah, it does."

"So I have a favor to ask you..."

"He can stay here," she answered. Wow I didn't even get to finish asking it and she knew what it was.

"How did you know that was what I was going to ask you?" I said.

"Because I know," she laughed. "And it's obvious. You have lovestruck all over your face. I doubt you want him going anywhere."

"You're good," I commented. "And you're right. I don't want him staying in some hotel on the other side of the city or something."

"Then he won't," she said.

I smiled at her. "Thanks, Wanda. For everything. Really. I know it must be a pain in the ass to have to house me and now my boyfriend? Man."

She gave me a smirk and I just realized what I said. The B word. "So you guys are officially a couple now?"

"Well, I don't know," I said and it was true. "I didn't really ask him."

"So ask him," she urged.

"I will," I promised. "Later. Before we go to sleep maybe."

"Yeah and about sleeping -"

"Yeah?"

"Is he staying on the couch or in your room?" Her face looked ready to burst with happiness for me but tried to stay serious.

"In my room," I answered and she almost squealed. "At least I think so."

"So you guys -?" She gestured with her hands as if to continue but maybe not with the boys not too far away.

"This morning," I whispered. "Right after he showed up."

"Oh my God," she laughed. "Hell of a welcoming, huh, Melanie?"

"Yeah," I laughed with her. "It was definitely something like that."

I was relieved we had been whispering the last part when I noticed Ian and Jared walk up to us. Ian slid an arm around Wanda's shoulders. "Girl talk?"

"Girl talk," she agreed.

"Boys never do what you girls do," Ian shook his head like he was sad about that. "We need to make a change, huh, Jared?"

"Yes we do," he agreed. "Tomorrow we'll get some ice cream and paint each other's nails."

I hit him playfully in the stomach. "That's not all we do, you know."

"I know," he smiled at me. My heart started racing again just being near him while he looked at me like that.

Wanda broke the tension between the two of us. "I think I'm gonna head to bed. We were at dinner for a while and me and Melanie have work tomorrow."

She eyed me and waited for me to say something. To be honest, I completely forgot about work. "Oh yeah! Back to work."

Wanda grabbed Ian's hand and dragged him with her to the room. On the way there, I heard him ask her "Why are we leaving so fast?" then the door shut behind them.

"You got a job here?" Jared smiled at me.

"It's just a diner," I replied.

"It's still a good thing," he told me.

Then he wrapped his arms around me. "Wanda said you can stay here. If you want to, that is."

"I want to," he nodded with another smile. "Where?"

"In my room," I innocently looked at him. "Again, only if you want to."

Now his face was smoldering. "I want to."

I thought I was going to collapse right there. My legs were barely able to hold me up. "I have to take a shower first though."

"Okay," he said but he didn't let me go yet.

I tried to wiggle free and I must have been crazy to try to. "Am I not allowed to go?"

"Not yet," he said and he leaned down and kissed me. His lips felt warm and tasted like the sauce from his dinner. He was right. It was delicious.

When he pulled apart from me, his arms slid away too and he let me go. Too bad now I wasn't so sure I wanted to be let go.

I took one more look at him. "Okay, I'm gonna go."

"Okay," he said back as I walked to _our_ room and got my stuff ready. I pretty much spent my whole shower distracted, thinking of Jared sitting on the bed waiting for me. It definitely made me faster.

When I came out and into the bedroom, I was right. He was sitting there and a smile appeared on his face. "Good shower?"

"Yes," I answered and he held out his arms for me. I went right to him, sitting on his lap. "Were you bored?"

"Nah," he shook his head and smiled. He also pushed a stray piece of hair away from my face. I closed my eyes. "Are you okay with this? Me and you and everything that's happened?"

My eyes opened. "Yes."

"Really?"

"Yes," I repeated and tightened my arms around his neck. "I am more than okay with this. I love you, Jared and right now, right here, with you, I couldn't be happier."

"Even if you thought of the circumstances?" I may love him but he's being such a downer right now. "With your dad and leaving?"

I shook my head. "That doesn't matter right now."

Jared nodded. He looked like he wanted to add more to it so I waited. When he still said nothing, I spoke again. "Is there something I'm missing?"

"No," he answered quickly. "No."

"Okay," I said not entirely convinced.

"I have to take a shower too," he said sheepishly. Seriousness was all gone from a moment ago.

I stood up off his lap and he stood, too. "I'll be right here."

Jared gave me a quick kiss before he left then walked out the room, shutting the door behind him. Something was weird. I couldn't tell what exactly but there was definitely something off. I shrugged and unmade my bed, getting into the covers and waited for Jared to come back.

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